Hofesh Shechter’s Olivier Award-nominated production Theatre of Dreams will be returning to Sadler’s Wells this Autumn to thrill audiences once again, in a strictly limited run before another UK date at The Lowry, Salford on 24 to 25 October.
Theatre of Dreams is more of a theatrical experience than a pure dance piece. Fusing dancers with staging, live musicians and a terrific sound score creates something that’s spectacular.
Hofesh is clearly an artistic genius – he is the creator of this piece, he’s choreographed, composed and directed. It grips from the start with a lone man dressed in double-denim walking through the audience and climbing onto the stage. He’s looking at a full stage drape which opens to make a rabbit-hole which he goes through. Once through we see the start of his journey as curtains are swiped to reveal dancers in a celebratory formation.
Hofesh’s signature piece is to have snap blackouts on the lighting at moments when you least expect it. Not on a “1” or an “8” in the musical count and often when the dancers are mid-move. It’s surprising. Then, with a snap back on lighting state, we can see again – but what we see is very different from a few seconds before. It’s a technique that’s used a fair bit and the dancers execute this split-second timing staging with perfection. Re-formatting themselves in the dark. It should also be noted that many lighting control systems and rigs are not capable of an instantaneous in-sync snap blackout, or restore, as they’re often using a mixture of manufacturers’ lights which have different response times. And that’s before you look at the likely mix of DMX and ethernet speeds from the control system. The fact that this works so well is a tribute to the production team who clearly know how to achieve this.
The lighting is exceptionally good! Vast beams of lights shining through like sunshine from the rear and through the many different configurations created by all the drapes. Again, the many drapes are swished along their suspension tracks by the dancers. It’s hard to comprehend how they remember it all.
The choreography is predominantly celebratory with many rhythmic bounces and hands overhead in the air. It has a distinctly Jewish look about it – I don’t know why and can’t explain why I’ve written that, but it does. Perhaps seeing too many Jewish weddings on film? The 12-strong dance troupe at times look like many more.
As the “theatre of dreams” continues and live musicans are added as a Jazz trio, it starts to move toward cacophony. It gets very loud. Then the main dancer comes out naked looking around. Oh yes, someone ate too much cheese before they slept into this dream. The constant re-arranging of the many drapes and the dance patterns and the lighting create so many incredible looks that the show never gets boring.
It’s not your typical dance company. The foot placements sometimes feel they’re second fiddle to the upper body movements and group formations, but the overall theatricality of the ingredients here leave a lasting impression with unforgettable visual imagery. By the end of the show we’re left with an overwhelming sense of “how did they do all that”?
Photo credit: Tom Visser
Hofesh Shechter Company presents:
THEATRE OF DREAMS
Choreography and Music: Hofesh Shechter
Lighting Design: Tom Visser
Costume Design: Osnat Kelner
Associate Artistic Director: Bruno Guillore
Music Collaborator: Yaron Engler
Set Collaborator: Niall Black
Performed by Hofesh Shechter Company
https://www.sadlerswells.com/whats-on/hofesh-shechter-company-theatre-of-dreams