WTF 2020 is an web series created by Ann Magnuson with Adam Dugas. The series launched in March not long after the stay-at-home orders were announced. Using dolls crafted by her Grandma Magnuson, Ann writes and performs the episodes which are then edited and augmented by Adam. While nominally telling the story of Dust Bunny and Arzetta navigating the pandemic, the episodes are also a diaristic document of life in 2020, incorporating psychedelic dreams, this summer's social unrest, and the testing site at Dodger Stadium. Inspired by a group reading of War & Peace that launched in March, both artists read the novel, which in turn led to the characters reading the book and becoming a touchstone throughout the series. The final episode, an epilogue, premiered on January 2, 2021. Other contributing artists included: Randolph A. Hudson III (Bongwater) provided original scoring; sound artist William Basinski offered tracks from his latest album “Lamentations” and guest voice artists included actor Zachary Street and Terry Sweeney (SNL).

The project was featured on the following online exhibitions:
Empirical Nonsense Daily
The Isolation Collection

ANN MAGNUSON: I’ve been making videos with my grandmother’s homemade “outsider art” dolls for years but only shared them privately for Facebook friends. When our world drastically changed and we all had to stay isolated, Adam Dugas and I created this no-budget DIY web series using these dolls and letting them voice all the fears, hopes and anxieties that have appeared along with Covid-19. I had a live musical theater show planned for July called WTF 2020 --addressing the madness of Trump’s America -- but there was no way any theater or club would be safe to open so I adapted the concept for the internet. I’ve always worked with my dreams in my writing, music and performances and in this web series I have incorporated the nightmares. The dolls voice the neurosis of the collective unconscious as they attempt to survive and they also explore multiple Jungian archetypes as a psychedelic process for healing. Joseph Campbell describes this process in his book “The Hero’s Journey” where the individual uses adversary as a Catalyst to fight personal demons, throw off the shackles of “the provisional self” and achieve a psychological wholeness and then the ultimate metamorphosis into a purely spiritual being.

ADAM DUGAS: WTF 2020 has been an amazing project with which to channel my feelings and thoughts about what the pandemic has caused and revealed. This collaboration has been a powerful way to share these reactions with film language. The puppet dolls, which Ann’s grandmother crafted decades ago, are animated by Ann - Dust Bunny exhibits unbridled fear and anxiety, while Arzetta provides the calming, rational voice that plunges into Jungian analysis. It’s like dramatizing what might be going on in Ann’s brain - I know mine has many competing voices reacting to what’s going on! The extra ingredients are the found footage elements, which are transformed from their original intent to something strange and magical. The mundane and the majestic - all valid, all one!

Adam Dugas returns to Akbar for a musical night of Solstice Sorcery in honor of the “reason for the season” the Winter Solstice. On this darkest day of the year, Dugas will present a selection of original holiday songs from his CHAOS & CANDY theatrical shows CHICKEN IN THE SNOW and UNHOLY NIGHT. Selections include “Country Christmas Trolls” and “Broken Toys” by Angela Di Carlo, “The Donkey Song” and “Anarchy at the North Pole” by Lizzy Yoder, and Dugas’s own compositions “Hammer of the Lord,” “Naughty Children,” “Aurora Borealis,” and “Ghost Blues.” As ever, the evening climaxes in a signature solo version of Handel’s “Hallelujah Chorus.” Featuring musicians Nick Demopoulos, Katie McKay and Rachel Dugas and special guest star, stand-up comedian Tyson Klein as Ginger Breadman. 8 PM $10 21+

The third in a suite of videos I made with Ann Magnuson for the digital release of her 2006 Album “Pretty Songs & Ugly Stories.” Both this video and the previous “Falling for an Actor” were created using SD footage shot by photographer Rocky Schenck during the shoot for the album art. It was a challenge to cut this super soft-focus footage to jibe with an HD world. The “Actor” footage was pretty brightly lit but the challenge in that piece was the camera was pretty static, so I used kaleidoscope effects to fill out the frame and animate the edges. For “Cynical Girl” the light was lower and scenery darker, so the image often became blurred and the color temperature varied pretty wildly. Ann’s wish was to make it as close to a full performance take as possible, and she does an amazing job of committing emotionally to the onscreen lip sync. It is perhaps the most personal song on the album, about meeting her husband and the psychic change it brought on. The tender, sincere quality to her acting comes through like a Golden Age of Hollywood period piece. I tend to embrace the flaws of what I’m working on - we didn’t have a real post budget anyway - and when I placed both takes alongside each other to assess the merits of each, I had a Eureka! moment of using the split screen. It made the different color palettes seem intentional, and the variations in her dramatic gestures - standing in one take, sitting in another - look like a choreographed piece.

VIDEO: Photography by Rocky Schenck Edited by Adam Dugas SONG: "Cynical Girl" music and lyrics by Ann Magnuson and Kristian Hoffman © 2006 Magnuson/Hoffman Pink Fleece Music/BMI (administered by Pacific Electric) Gothic Novelty Music/ASCAP (administered by Wixen Music) From the Ann Magnuson album "Pretty Songs & Ugly Stories" Produced and arranged by Kristian Hoffman Musicians: Kristian Hoffman - keys, percussion Joe Berardi - drums, percussion Ernesto Garcia - bass guitar David Bongiovanni - guitar Pierre Smith - guitar Heather Lockie - strings Basic tracks recorded at Earle Mankey’s Studio engineered by Earle Mankey. Additional recording at Catasonic Studio, engineer by Mark Wheaton. Mixed by Mark Wheaton at Catasonic Studio. Mastered by Brad Vance at Red Mastering. “Pretty Songs & Ugly Stories” © 2006 Ann Magnuson all rights reserved

Photography by Rocky Schenck
Edited by Adam Dugas

Photos courtesy of Folger Shakespeare Library; Videos courtesy Library of Congress, Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Division.

"Falling for an Actor" music and lyrics by Ann Magnuson and Kristian Hoffman
© 2006 Magnuson/Hoffman Pink Fleece Music/BMI (administered by Pacific Electric) Gothic Novelty Music/ASCAP (administered by Wixen Music)

From the Ann Magnuson album "Pretty Songs & Ugly Stories" Produced and arranged by Kristian Hoffman

Musicians: Kristian Hoffman - keys, percussion Joe Berardi - drums, percussion Ernesto Garcia - bass guitar David Bongiovanni - guitar Pierre Smith - guitar Heather Lockie - strings Jonathan Lea - additional guitar feedback Basic tracks recorded at Earle Mankey’s Studio engineered by Earle Mankey. Additional recording at Catasonic Studio, engineer by Mark Wheaton. Mixed by Mark Wheaton at Catasonic Studio. Mastered by Brad Vance at Red Mastering.

“Pretty Songs & Ugly Stories” © 2006 Ann Magnuson all rights reserved

Before becoming a friend and collaborator, I was a fan of Ann Magnuson. Bongwater (Ann's experimental folk-punk-talk band) was a huge influence on me. Her dream-infused writing and performances are always combined with a sharp wit and great images. (Check out the cover of her album The Power of Pussy!)

The song "I Met An Astronaut" was inspired by conversations Ann had with Dave Scott, commander of the Apollo 15 mission (who drove the first moon buggy!). Scott was a technical adviser on the HBO series From the Earth to the Moon, and Ann met him on set, as she was playing the part of Scott's favorite nurse. The song appears on Ann's 2006 album Pretty Songs and Ugly Stories, which will be re-released next month digitally/streaming for the first time.

Wistful and lyrical, the song is an elegiac recall of tweenage Ann's experience of living in 1969 and a beautiful setting of the words Scott used to describe his experience of being on the moon: "ENDLESSLY FULFILLING."  

We planned for the majority of the film to be constructed from vintage NASA footage, but I was thrilled to come across reels and reels of unedited 16mm camera footage from various Apollo missions that some fantastic NASA employee uploaded to the Internet Archive. (Our taxes pay for the footage, so the images belong to all Americans.)

In approaching the edit, I was thinking of the great assemblage documentary The Atomic Cafe, which repurposed 1950's propaganda films to great effect. I found Vietnam footage in the National Archives, we used Ann's own family home movies from the 1960s and shots from the first major Sci-Fi effects film Georges Méliès's 1902 "A Trip to the Moon" and Segundo de Chomón's 1908 unauthorized remake "Excursion to the Moon."

I'm astonished by the images from the moon voyages, many of which I've never seen before. The zero gravity hops, the moon buggy racing, the LEM blastoff, and just the incredible close-ups of the moon surface in the changing light.

From Ann: “I wrote this song after meeting astronaut Dave Scott on the set of the HBO series “From the Earth to the Moon” produced by Tom Hanks. I played the astronaut’s favorite nurse, Dee O’Hara, in Episode 3 “We Have Cleared the Tower. Dave Scott from Apollo 15 was technical advisor on the series and was happy to answer all my questions about what it was like being on the moon. A most memorable experience that I shall cherish forever”

“I Met An Astronaut”
Written and performed by Ann Magnuson
From her album “Pretty Songs & Ugly Stories”
Produced and arranged by Kristian Hoffman ©2006 Ann Magnuson/Pink Fleece Music/BMI (administered by Pacific Electric) Musicians: Kristian Hoffman - keys, percussion; Joe Berardi - drums, percussion; Jonathan Lea - guitars; William Bongiovanni - acoustic stand up bass; DJ Bonebrake - vibes, skull tube; Ann Magnuson - acoustic guitar Basic tracks recorded at Earle Mankey’s Studio engineered by Earle Mankey. Mixed by Mark Wheaton at Catasonic Studio. Mastered by Brad Vance at Red Mastering. Music video directed by Adam Dugas and Ann Magnuson Edited and shot by Adam Dugas Footage courtesy of: NASA NASA Goddard National Archives and Records Administration ESA/Hubble Prelinger Archives Mitch Martinez

In “An Evening With Adam Dugas” the singer and showman will present a songbook culled from pop music, cult film soundtracks, cabaret classics, deep cut showtunes and original compositions. Dugas’s musical shows include Unholy Night, Chicken in the Snow and Dueling Harps with Ann Magnuson. He released two EPs with harpist Mia Theodoratus as Adam & Mia, covering songs as varied as Radiohead, Donna Summer, and Pink Floyd. A founder of the theatrical cabaret troupe The Citizens Band, he wrote, directed and performed in four major shows at Deitch Projects gallery, which represented the project, including The Trepanning Opera which was remounted at Art Basel Miami Beach. In addition to solo and cameo performances all over New York City, Adam has performed in Shanghai, Paris and at the Life Ball in Vienna. Mr. Dugas is also a filmmaker, writer and director. Pianist Michael Crane will provide accompaniment.

Doors open at 7 PM for dinner and drinks. Showtime is 9 PM.

$15 cover plus 2 drink minimum. Reservations can be made at 323-467-7444

In “An Evening With Adam Dugas” the singer and showman will present a songbook culled from pop music, cult film soundtracks, cabaret classics, deep cut showtunes and original compositions. Dugas’s musical shows include Unholy Night, Chicken in the Snow and Dueling Harps with Ann Magnuson. He released two EPs with harpist Mia Theodoratus as Adam & Mia, covering songs as varied as Radiohead, Donna Summer, and Pink Floyd. A founder of the theatrical cabaret troupe The Citizens Band, he wrote, directed and performed in four major shows at Deitch Projects gallery, which represented the project, including The Trepanning Opera which was remounted at Art Basel Miami Beach. In addition to solo and cameo performances all over New York City, Adam has performed in Shanghai, Paris and at the Life Ball in Vienna. Mr. Dugas is also a filmmaker, writer and director. Pianist Michael Crane will provide accompaniment.

Doors open at 7 PM for dinner and drinks. Showtime is 9 PM. Reservations can be made at 323-467-7444

Adam Dugas sings original material about the pagan underpinnings of the holiday season, culled from years of the CHAOS & CANDY holiday shows he produced in NYC. Accompanied by a live mini-band, these punk, metal, new wave, and country songs, sea shanties and powerful new standards will become your favorite holiday musical traditions. Right now, this remains your only way to hear them. Yes, there is a Chanukah song.

Keywords: winter warlock, witch, snow fairy, drunken sailor with VD, animal, monster, ghosts, haunted feelings

Musical accompaniment by Katie McKay, Nick Demopoulos and Rachel Dugas. SPECIAL GUEST CAMEO: ANN MAGNUSON
AKBAR 4356 W. Sunset Blvd. Silverlake, CA - DOORS 7:30 SHOWTIME 8:00 COVER $10

PROUD OF US

Sam Pancake and Nina Millin star in PROUD OF US, a new series of comedic vignettes.

SUBSCRIBE AND WATCH HERE

Adam Dugas directed, shot and edited the first four installments: “Snackship,” “Word Tapestry,” “Vitamin D,” and “Online Content.”

THE SUN DON’T CARE 

Video credits

Directed by Adam Dugas and Ann Magnuson

Edited by Adam Dugas

Shot by Adam Dugas, Ann Magnuson and Sadie Spezzano

Sun footage and graphics courtesy of NASA

Sun vector graphic courtesy of footageisland

Home movies by Bob Magnuson

Arzetta doll created by Grandma Magnuson

© 2018 Ann Magnuson/Pink Fleece Music 

All rights reserved

Song credits

Written by Ann Magnuson © 2018 Pink Fleece Music (BMI) 

Administered by Pacific Electric Songs

Ann Magnuson - Vocals, Mouth Harp 

Joe Berardi - Autoharp, Percussion, Spoons, Jug 

Recorded and Mixed by Mark Wheaton at Catasonic Studios

© Ann Magnuson/Pink Fleece Music All rights reserved

Ann Magnuson’s new song “The Sun Don’t Care” draws on her West Virginia roots to deliver an Appalachian-inspired spiritual ballad for today's troubled times. 

Born and raised in Charleston, West Virginia, Ann Magnuson is an actress, writer, musician and artist who is probably best known from the band Bongwater. She currently appears on Season 3 of the Amazon Prime series “The Man in the High Castle”, guest-curated the critically acclaimed Club 57 exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art, and was recently inducted into the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame. 

The music video for the track features original folk art sculptures of the Sun that Magnuson created as well as homemade crochet dolls crafted by her Grandma Magnuson and incorporates family home movies shot by her father during her West Virginia childhood. The literal star of the video is our Sun, particularly as seen in public domain footage created by NASA. While Magnuson does appear briefly, her avatar in the video is Arzetta, a doll created (along with others) for the grandchildren by Grandma Magnuson in the 1950s in Morgantown, West Virginia. “She was a Swedish immigrant, ” says Magnuson of her grandmother “and my grandfather was a Swedish evangelist who preached the gospel to immigrant communities in the mid-west in the early part of the 20th century. Grandma’s favorite expression was “The Lord Will Provide” which meant no matter how bad things got – and things got real bad for them during the Depression and WW2- a higher power would prevail and make everything okay. It’s that kind of optimism, along with the way Grandma never threw anything away and created artwork out of those remnants- that inspires this song and video.”

Artist and filmmaker Adam Dugas co-directed the video with Magnuson and edited the piece, a dreamlike solar journey. “Ann told me that her new art movement is SurRURALism….so I ran with that concept. Using Arzetta [the main doll] as the speaker was really liberating, I created a world for her using the spectacular NASA sun-scapes. I also liked how humble so many of the elements are - dolls, folk art, the Magnuson family home movies from the 60s - and also iPhone footage that Ann shot of various sun reflections as well as the sun masked by smoke from the apocalyptic California wildfires fires this year. Utilizing all these colloquial elements felt in tune with the jug band quality of the song.”

The simple DIY acoustic production of the track reflects Magnuson’s West Virginia roots, as does the improvised Bible Belt style ‘preaching.’  Longtime collaborator Joe Berardi plays homemade percussive instruments like spoons, jug and an old bucket as well as an out-of-tune Autoharp. Magnuson provides vocals as well as improvising on the traditional mouth harp. The track was recorded and mixed by Mark Wheaton at Catasonic Studios where Magnuson’s latest solo album DREAM GIRL was produced.

“The DIY nature of the music connects with the way Grandma made those dolls,” Magnuson explains. “Arzetta –the name actually comes from a nickname I had as a teenage - was fashioned from pipe cleaners and old nylon stockings with a hand-embroidered face - a piece of ‘outsider art’ reflecting the resourcefulness of how my grandmother and other impoverished West Virginians made the most of everything during the toughest of times.

“Grandma remains my greatest inspiration,” says Magnuson “and as I age, I find myself living more like her. She taught me how to sew and how to tell stories. Grandma was a great storyteller. I would sing along with her as she played hymns on her out-of-tune piano, helped her make cinnamon rolls and she even tried to teach me Swedish but that never stuck. But one thing Grandma did teach me that did stick was to stay optimistic; to keep a hold onto hope, even during the bleakest of times.” 

“The Sun Don’t Care” is about seeing the bigger picture. For me, The Sun embodies the essence of a Higher Power, one that cosmically transcends ideology. “

“Pondering it’s size and the fact all these gadzillion hydrogen explosions are constantly happening and it’s all that is keeping us alive helps me from falling into an abyss of depression over how toxic our human culture has become. Especially politics. The lyric “The Sun Don’t Care who is President” doesn’t mean I don’t care who is President. Of course I care. But I need to know that the real power in charge is something bigger, something cosmic, something spiritual, something that shines equally on the red state and the blue- and my hope is that all of us all stop fighting and plug into an optimistic positive energy and hopefully find solutions that help everyone. And if we can’t do that collectively, then we need to each individually “shine our light” of love into this world of pain – by being creative, or just plain nice- and hope that positive energy will spread, the way the sun shines!”