Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Misha Penton. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Misha, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

My newly released set of three new music videos explores the fragility of our bodies in an intense and dynamic world. I created the works as an offering of beauty, hope, and inspiration. My music and videos inhabit a dreamworld where poetry comes alive in the movement of language through the voice and body. The videos were filmed in Houston and New England and feature the delicacy of the body against the impersonal sea and Houston’s stunning but stoic sparkling cityscape. The first video of the set of three, Radiant Poison: https://vimeo.com/641997559

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m a singer, composer, writer, and filmmaker. My music sounds like a blend of futuristic opera, avant-spoken word, and gothic chamber electronica—you will hear the rise and fall of my many layered voices, and the swirling guitars and electronic sound worlds created by me and my collaborators. I create beautiful and innovative music and media works, facilitating creative expression, inspiration, and connection—and offering experiences that enhance wellness. My projects blossom in many forms: video works, audio projects, live performance, site specific installations, writings, and mentoring.

As a creativity mentor, I specialize in one-on-one sessions and group workshops that cultivate and nurture personal growth through creativity—everyone can benefit from silencing their inner critic and making room for inspiration in their lives.

I make my home in Houston, Texas and I’ve come to love the dystopian beauty of Houston’s spiraling superhighways, the cathedral-like concrete pilings of the underpasses, the wildflower-lined bayous, and the ever-expanding glass and steel of the metropolis.

My recent projects include a 13-part Micro Opera project including my (micro)Requiem inspired by Mozart’s unfinished Requiem in D minor; Visible Darkness, a new music video; Threshold, a site-specific performance created for the cavernous and iconic Silos at Sawyer Yards in Houston; Anecdote of the Spirit, a contemplative work created for the Rothko Chapel in Houston; The Medusa Project, a multi-version monodrama for voice and media comprised of films, writings, and installations including Medusa Emergent: a film and sound work created for the 35′ high MediaWall at Bath Spa University, UK; and the fall 2021 release of a new set of Micro Operas, Creation Stories, related to the phases of the moon and inspired by sacred cosmogony texts.

I made my directorial debut with Houston Grand Opera directing A Rose, a new web opera in HGO’s series Star Cross’d (2019), and I’ve been delighted to be a guest artist at The Juilliard School, Concordia University Montreal, University of Houston Honors College, Sam Houston State University, Texas, A&M College Station, and Lone Star College Montgomery, Texas. My work has appeared at the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, Dallas Museum of Art, Menil Collection Houston, Rothko Chapel, University of Houston Center for Creative Work, DiverseWorks Arts Space Houston, Bath Spa University, UK, SPARKFEST Digital UK and Classical:NEXT, EU.

Check out the 3-new music video EP, Radiant Poison, celebrating the magnificent transformative feminine: https://mishapenton.com/projects-current/2022/2/11/radiant-poison

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I hope my work is inspiring, healing, and ‘wonder-full’—helping to sustain each of us. I aspire to offer beauty to an otherwise seemingly dystopian world and support the individual and community environment for creativity to flourish.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

I want each of us to find our unique voices and make a gift of our creative selves to the world—embarking upon journeys true to our unique voices and visions. The world needs our inspired work, now more than ever.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://mishapenton.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mishadiva
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MishaPentonMusic

Image Credits
Misha Penton, singer-composer-filmmaker. Photo: D. Nickerson.