It’s been more than a few years since the last Child of the Church production, but finally, a new work by the company has arrived. "Spirit and Soul Become Confused” was helmed by director and vocalist Lucia della Paolera in collaboration with composer and producer Gobby, running for two nights at Saint Peter’s Church in Midtown Manhattan last weekend. The new production was supposed to debut back in 2020 as the sequel to their first, “my heart swims in blood,” 2019, but some biblically sized obstacles got in the way, including a global pandemic and a foundation-shaking flood.

“I was hell-bent on having it at Saint Peter's no matter what,” recounts della Paolera. People familiar with the corporate-office-plaza-meets-church from the 1970s, either because of its distinctive Massimo and Lella Vignelli interiors, its vexing outsides, or its chapel by artist Louise Nevelson, will sympathize with the executive decision to sit on their hands and wait out the storm.

The building becomes a central character in the ensemble cast of “Spirit and Soul Become Confused,” which includes the piece’s namesake “Geist und Seele wird verwirret,” Johann Sebastian Bach’s seven-part sacred cantata. It is woven together with a range of music, old and new, including premieres of music by Gobby, cellist Timothy Rusterholz, and saxophonist Jake Dester, as well as costumes styled by Lester Garcia, laser design by Michael Guidetti, choreography by FlucT’s Monica Mirabile, and visual design by della Paolera and violist Justine Lugli. While the show is not exactly a traditional opera, it does meet Richard Wagner’s qualifications for a Gesamtkunstwerk—both in its consideration of the whole and of the future.

“In this show, there is a lot of doubling with my physical gestures and what my mouth is singing, what is written in the music and on the church wall. The music, choreography, costumes, the architecture, and neighborhood tell a story set somewhere between a trance and a TED Talk. A midtown cult,” says della Paolera. The new piece showcases where Child of the Church is headed—more built-out, site-specific performances by a growing company of collaborators working together to deconstruct the canon and put it back together again in their own image.

Here, Child of the Church co-founder della Paolera offers a walk through of their dress rehearsal with images taken by photographer Gillian Steiner.

The second half of the show explores the feeling of sorrow in many shades, from the sacred to the clownish. The lighting by Seth Tillett will build off the natural light in the church. We embraced the strange stark lighting in the sanctuary. Pictured from left to right: Juan José Jiménez, Francesca Caruso, Justine Lugli, Timothy Rusterholz, Lucia della Paolera, Jake Dester, and Brian Krock.

Timothy rearranged the third movement of the Bach cantata for the full group. It’s semi-improvised and cued by him, very trippy and expansive. Pictured from left to right: Francesca Caruso, Justine Lugli, Timothy Rusterholz, Jake Dester, Brian Krock, Lucia della Paolera, and Alex LoRe.

We chose not to work with a conductor on this piece. Timothy Rusterholz, our cellist, cues us on a lot of the music, especially in the Bach. He also contributed an original piece, “YHUTZ,” to the program. Pictured: Timothy Rusterholz.

We re-orchestrated the Bach. Instead of oboes, we are using saxophones and a clarinet. In Bach’s time there was a tradition of using whatever instruments were around and I love the chatty sound of the sax on this music. Pictured from left to right: Francesca Caruso, Timothy Rusterholz, Justine Lugli, Jake Dester, Brian Krock, Alex LoRe, and Lucia della Paolera.

We worked on choreography with Monica Mirabile. The movement is supposed to be somewhere between a trance and a TED Talk. A miracle in midtown. The Bach has this beautiful text by the 18th century poet Georg Christian Lehms that shifts back and forth from the very physical and anatomical to the heavens. We drew from that in the movement and staging for the piece. Pictured from left to right: Lucia della Paolera and Brian Krock.

Our harpist, Esther Sibiude, and guitarist, Lance Piebenga, made an original arrangement of the iconic Adagio movement of [Joaquín] Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez. After all the saxophone and organ, this will feel like mouthwash for the ears. Pictured: Esther Sibiude and Lance Piebenga.

We based the staging and costumes for the Bach cantata on the architecture of St. Peter’s. Our suits, styled by Lester Garcia and produced by our violist Justine Lugli and Arena Embroidery, incorporate patches of drawings by Gobby based on the music and the space. Pictured from left to right: Francesca Caruso, Justine Lugli, Jake Dester, Timothy Rusterholz, Brian Krock, Alex LoRe, and Lucia della Paolera.

Michael Guidetti designed laser projections of the texts and incorporated some animations of drawings Gobby made. Pictured from left to right: Francesca Caruso, Timothy Rusterholz, Justine Lugli, Lucia della Paolera, Brian Krock, and Alex LoRe.

Gobby composed music, a solo trumpet piece, and an ensemble piece for the show, and he and I worked together to write some music directly into the Bach cantata. Pictured: Gobby.