THE HANGOVER REPORT – Basil Twist’s genre-busting SYMPHONIE FANTASTIQUE returns, triumphantly

Basil Twist's "Symphonie Fantastique" at HERE Arts Center.

Basil Twist’s “Symphonie Fantastique” at HERE Arts Center.

What’s the most compelling dance performance currently playing in town? Well, I’d place my bet on singular visual artist Basil Twist’s gorgeously handcrafted Symphonie Fantastique at HERE Arts Center. The thing is, there’s nary a dancer in sight. You see, Symphonie Fantastique – which has triumphantly returned to New York after premiering here twenty years ago – is technically, in its execution, a puppet show. But you probably can already surmise that the piece is much more than just mere puppetry. Indeed, Mr. Twist’s (who was deservedly awarded a MacArthur “Genius” Grant a few years ago) iconic work defies categorization.

Symphonie Fantastique sets Berlioz’s colorful musical score of the same name to the kind of plotless visual poetry that characterizes some of Balanchine’s most transcendent pure dance works. Given that the piece is famously and ingeniously performed in a thousand gallon aquatic tank (powered by five hardworking backstage puppeteers), it defies gravity in a way that can’t be accomplished in conventional earth-bound dance performances. This ability to play with timing and suspended movements allows Mr. Twist and his puppeteers to interact with the music in a way that’s seamless and hypnotic. Many times, I found myself asking whether it was Mr. Twist’s inspired kaleidoscopic wonderment that was writing the music (lovingly performed live by pianist Christopher O’Riley). That’s truly high praise.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

 

SYMPHONIE FANTASTIQUE
Off-Broadway, Classical Music/Puppetry/Dance
HERE Arts Center
55 minutes (without an intermission)
Through June 17

Categories: Dance, Music, Off-Broadway, Other Music, Theater

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