Theatre Of Dreams

Hofesh Shechter Company

Adelaide Festival

Festival Theatre

14 March

***

Hofesh Shechter’s production is, to say the least, epic. The work, with both the music and choreography by Hofesh Shechter, was all encompassing.

As the title suggests the dance represented dreams both dark and emotional.  To a very industrial soundtrack the dance was often frenetic and involved great skill.

One aspect that stood out was the use of the curtains. They were constantly moving and changing, and I mean, every few seconds it seemed, altering the stage space so that the dancers would have to completely change their movements as new spaces evolved. This created a very three-dimensional stage which the production made full use of.

As with such productions, just what each segment represented is a matter for each member of the audience.

There is no question that these are dancers of the highest calibre. Their virtuosity, skill and stamina were second to none. The energy they displayed was incredible.

However, as effective as the lighting was, especially in dealing with the constant change of stage formation, it was often so dark that it was very difficult to appreciate the dance, which, after all is what we had come to see. The industrial sound was broken up with the use of three on stage musicians and this was very important as it provided a break from the incessant computer-generated music.

There were many segments where the performers engaged in a frenetic dance, each apparently performing a completely different part. This did become a bit repetitive towards the end.

These comments do not take away from the fact that Theatre Of Dreams is an outstanding production.

At one stage, with the on-stage musicians providing a bossa nova like music, the audience was invited to stand and dance, something that must be unique and welcome in providing almost an interval.

A very fitting way to conclude what has been yet another great Adelaide Festival.