Interludes

THE HANGOVER REPORT – Keone and Mari Madrid’s BEYOND BABEL is one of the most exuberant pieces of dance theater I’ve ever seen

• By drediman
• February 9, 2020
• No Comments

The company of Hideaway Circus and Keone and Mari Madrid’s “Beyond Babel” at the Gym at Judson.

This afternoon at the Gym at Judson, I had the great privilege of catching Hideaway Circus’s production of Beyond Babel. Choreographed by Keone and Mari Madrid and set to today’s popular music catalogue (artists like A Tribe Called Quest, Busta Rhymes, and Lil Wayne are represented), the piece is an urban dance adaptation of Romeo and Juliet. Set in a “Verona” that’s at once contemporary and mythic, Beyond Babel seems to draw inspiration from both Shakespeare’s original, as well as the youthful exuberance of West Side Story (which itself is famously based on Romeo and Juliet).

In short, Beyond Babel is one of the most sensational pieces of dance theater I’ve ever encountered. The hip hop choreography by the Madrids is masterful, effortlessly sustaining momentum and the audience’s engagement over the course of two full hours. Together with Josh and Lyndsay Aviner’s immersive creative direction, the production manages a stunning hat trick – Beyond Babel works completely as both dance and theater. Simply through movement, each character is given full dimension and a convincing back story. Don’t let the scrappy, handcrafted look of the production fool you. Beyond Babel is thrilling, utterly sophisticated theatrical storytelling, ingeniously and seamlessly toying with perspective and time, as well as internal/external worlds. A work as exciting and special as this deserves a larger platform and a successful future life.

The young, talented, and refreshingly multi-ethnic cast of 12 is extraordinary. Each dancer is stunning technically, but also vibrantly idiosyncratic. Leading the cast as the tragic star-crossed lovers are the Madrids themselves, who are gorgeous and exude uncommon emotional urgency and resonance. In fact, the same can be said of the rest of the tireless cast. Captivating standouts include Mikey Ruiz’s charismatic, vivacious “Mercutio” and Selene Haro’s soulful “Nurse”. Although I can nitpick about the work’s lack of a queer perspective and its generalized politics, these are neither here nor there. Particularly within the confines of an intimate Off-Broadway house, Beyond Babel literally explodes through the fourth wall, sweeping up the audience with its visceral, overwhelming emotional power. It packs quite a wallop. Don’t miss it.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

BEYOND BABEL
Off-Broadway, Dance Theater
Hideaway Circus / The Gym at Judson
2 hours (with one intermission)
Through March 29