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LA TIMES THEATER REVIEWS 'Dark Side of Moon'
April 18, 2008 Dancing to the light of 'Moon'
Why fritter and waste the hours in an offhand way by merely listening to "The Dark Side of the Moon" when you can see it accompanied by an original dance/movement performance piece? Such is the gauntlet thrown down by Berubians Theatre Company with its ensemble-developed no-frills workshop production that sets out to physicalize the archetypal themes of conflict, insanity, aging, death and resurrection in Pink Floyd's signature 1973 concept album. Well, as archetypal as the band's post-Syd Barrett incarnation ever got. Still, with more than 40 million copies sold, it's a safe bet there's an audience for this one among die-hard fans.
Played straight through without embellishing dialogue or narrative bridges, the recorded song cycle, with its extensive use of environmental sounds and elliptical snippets of spoken text, provides just enough structural hooks for a suggestive allegorical fable about the evolution of the human spirit and its perpetual struggle with good and evil.
Amid the familiar heartbeats and opening strains of "Breathe in the Air," the dancers awaken in a short-lived state of innocence only to be enslaved in a self-destructing robotic assembly line in the frenetic "On the Run." Out of the ruins comes the "Time" segment about the dawn of love and its shadow-side -- jealousy -- culminating in a crimson-lit orgy of inventive erotic poses. Very handy to be taking notes.
The lyrics limit the scenes' dramatic specificity -- the ever-popular "Money" affords an energetic tour of consumer vices, whereas the interminable "Great Gig in the Sky" bogs down in abstraction. Filling the whole album entails a fair amount of rehashing images of temptation, fall and resurrection.
Still, director-choreographer Chris Berube stylishly integrates the considerable skill variation in his 17-member troupe. In the more individualized iconic lead performances, Janice Anderson's earth goddess/redeemer has obvious Christ overtones as she battles Francis Langsang's madman-as-fallen-angel, while Maria Olsen's delightfully feral, snarling temptress makes a convincing case that it may not be nice to fool with the Dark Side, but it sure is a lot of fun.
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Philip Brandes
"Dark Side of the Moon," Next Stage Theater, 1523 N. La Brea Ave., Hollywood. 8 p.m. Sundays. Ends May 25. $15. (323) 850-7827. Running time: 45 minutes.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-stage18apr18,1,1399387.story |
