Shadowland – Pilobolus

Overview

Remember how awesome Spongebob was? And Jimmy Neutron? And CatDog? Well turns out they were all written by the same guy, Steven Banks. What a legend. And now he has gone and out-awesomed himself again, this time by writing for dance.

Reserve judgement until you watch this. Turns out, the guy is potentially even better at writing dance productions than scripting shows about sponges and starfish and genius kids and conjoined twin domesticated animals.

Shadowland is a collaboration between Banks and Pilobolus. The American modern dance company started up in 1971, and has performed over 100 choreographed works in over 64 countries. Their trademark is their strong element of physical interaction between numerous dancers, and the exaggerated contortions of human form.

Shadowland proves to be no exception. Dancers seemingly morph into animals, giants and even objects as obscure as motorcycles. The illusion of transformation into these impossible forms is made possible through the use of shadow. Audiences watch the silhouettes of dancers, who use trick lighting and complex movements to deceive audiences' eyes and create unbelievable images.

Shadowland tells the story of a young girl who dreams of independence. Through a luminous playground of dance, gymnastics and optical illusion we follow her as she discovers her shadow and journeys into the Shadowland, where she meets numerous interesting creatures. The entire story is danced to the beats of successful American composer David Poe. Poe has toured the world with countless musicians, including Bob Dylan, so you know he must be good.

When you combine the guy who made Spongebob, the guy who played for Dylan and the group who broke the world record for fitting the most humans into a Mini Cooper, something amazing has got to happen. Shadowland is that something.