When you enter A Red Orchid Theatre for its Jeff Award nominated production of "Birds of North America," at first, you might think you've entered a bird sanctuary, as the sounds of birds fill the theater to give audience members a taste of what they're about to see.
"The show is about John and Caitlyn. They're a father and a daughter. They bond over bird watching, and each scene takes place the next Fall," said Ethan Korvne, the play's composer and sound designer.
He said he worked with flutist and actress Suzanne Hannau to create music that essentially mimics bird sounds.
"I just sent her bird sounds, like actual recordings of birds, and I was like what can you do with this?" he said. "She sent back her playing her versions of them and we just got together and fit those sounds to the music I was doing."
The result sounds almost like a duet between the bird calls and the instruments.
Evan Hanover
"I just had this idea of kind of there being three elements: the actual bird sounds, Suzanne dueting them with the flute and me responding to them on piano," he said. "It gives it this very back and forth conversational feel."
He said for many audience members, the music takes them back to their childhoods, many of which were sound tracked to bird noises and other sounds of nature.
"I don't think people realize how important to their emotional memory the bird sounds you grew up hearing are," he said. "I feel like people hear that and they're immediately back in their own backyard as a kid. That's all I could ever hope for in my job is to take people somewhere."
A Red Orchid Theatre
Korvne said he hopes his work touches audience members and inspires a new appreciation for birds and their calls.
"Lord knows it's only getting worse for our bird populations, and while we still have these abundant sounds around us, it's just a beautiful hobby," he said. "It's a great way to connect with nature. So, I hope that people do that after they see it."
"Birds of North America" is playing at A Red Orchid Theatre in Old Town through Oct. 4, 2026. Tickets are expected to sell out.
