Squonk

"A multimedia troupe of infinite jest with an imagination to match” - New York Times

Our first big show was performed in a Pittsburgh junkyard, with choreographed cranes, roaring earthmovers, and screaming machine shears, over 30 years ago. Led by composer/pianist Jackie Dempsey and artist/wind player Steve O’Hearn, Squonk has toured to festivals and theaters in Europe, Asia, and 36 of the United States, performing live for over 1 million people. Festivals include Bumbershoot, Supercrawl, Ellnora | The Guitar Festival, Great South Bay Music Festival, and Grassroots Festival . If there’s a festival with “Art” in the name, we’ve been there, from Artscape to Artisphere to Artosphere to Artsplosure! And we’ve played both Off-Broadway and on Broadway. We’ve shared a bill with Bob Dylan, The Decemberists, Los Lobos, Béla Fleck, Punch Brothers, Grouplove, Soja, Lucinda Williams, Explosions in the Sky, and Rebirth Brass Band, to name a few.

Our music has been called “gloriously eccentric” (Time Out New York) and “Debussy meets Godzilla” (Washington Post). Our shows have been described as “insane majesty" (The Scotsman) and “surreal and poetic” (USA Today).

Squonk shows aim to dazzle and delight. Imagine dancing tuba bells, 25-foot inflatable hands rigged like sailing ships, double decker bike stages, giant audience-powered bellows, a 40-foot-tall blue lady, and a monster truck outfitted with a truck horn calliope.

Search Squonk Opera for more music.