September 8, 2025
Meet DIRECT ADDRESS commissioned artists FAHAD SIADAT & HEX
For the past few months, Cornerstone has been working on DIRECT ADDRESS, a project that asks how theater can create a space for gathering, discourse, and dreaming at a time when we really need it in Los Angeles.
We’re excited to introduce you to the commissioned artists we’re collaborating with on DIRECT ADDRESS. Over the next few weeks we’ll be sending out emails that go a bit deeper into each artist’s life and practice and offer some info on what they’re planning to make for public spaces, and for the Ford Amphitheater when DIRECT ADDRESS premieres for one night only on October 24th.
Fahad Siadat & HEX collective are up first!
How would you describe what you and HEX make?
HEX makes work that relies on the spontaneous creativity of the individual performers and the strong relationship between them. While potentially operatic in scope, these pieces are often more abstract than clearly narrative. Our pieces tend to follow a line of moods dictated by overarching themes and concepts that shape the work as a whole. As an individual artist, my work is predominantly focused on using music as a spiritual practice, and by spiritual practice I mean work that leads us to connect with ourselves, to each other, and to our mythic imagination.
Where would you say you come from (answer however you choose to)?
I come from Oregon, born and raised. I come from immigrant parents, a child of war and revolution. I come from in-between places. I come from a place of good intentions and care. HEX as a whole comes from more traditional music backgrounds and is an ensemble of individuals interested in breaking free from the institutional expectation of classical musicians to create work that is authentic, alive, and wildly expressive.
What have you all decided to make with your DIRECT ADDRESS commission?
HEX is making a piece we are tentatively calling “the revival”, which takes its inspiration from different kinds of soapboxing, so to speak. Members of the ensemble are invited to use the space for one of four activities: rant/confess/praise/sing. Each artist will take on the role of soloist for their piece and create a series of musical cells or guidelines the rest of the ensemble will use as a basis for improvisation that accentuates and emphasizes the message the soloist is bringing to the table. We are considering an option where the public will be given Space to jump on the soapbox and take on the role of soloist as well.
What are you currently reading / watching / listening to?
Non-fiction: the writings of Hildegard Von Bingen, mostly her mystical visions and interpretations. Fiction: The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese (and also Sun House by David James Duncan, but I’ve been incrementally moving through that book for years).
What keeps you up at night?
I have a three year old: I am always tired and don’t have trouble going to sleep. On the rare occasion that I can’t sleep I’m either harried by libido, stressed by needing to finish an upcoming project, or just reading a really good book.
DIRECT ADDRESS is theater as discourse. It is a celebration of the First Amendment and an experiment in making art out of the present tense. DIRECT ADDRESS is an appeal to your imagination and a gathering in the heart of the storm.
Cornerstone Theater Company has commissioned a group of local artists to make works for public spaces throughout Los Angeles County—works that directly address the state of things as they are right now and attempt poetic interventions on behalf of a just future. These short works will be performed across Los Angeles leading to their complete one-night presentation at The Ford on October 24th. DIRECT ADDRESS is inspired by the history of American activism and public performance—from Frederick Douglass to ACT UP and beyond. It’s an invitation to reimagine how we exercise our first amendment rights. Commissioned artists include Ana María Álvarez, Agnes Borinsky, Daniel Alexander Jones, Fahad Siadat & HEX, Mario Vega, Members of the Cornerstone Ensemble, and more.
