Pilobolus’ work Shadowland which has already been seen by half a million people globally, is a theatre of illusion and the perfect antidote to the highly technical age in which we live.  Using that most simple of childhood games of creating animal-shaped shadows on the wall as a starting concept; the creators have then taken the production to the next level by borrowing from the techniques of shadow puppetry, silhouette artistry and cinematic story-boarding. 

Growing out of Pilobolus’s initial shadow theatre performance at the 79th Annual Academy Awards 2007 presentation, the work has evolved under the artistic direction of Robby Barnet, using a large team of creative personnel who work collaboratively – true to the spirit of the founding ethos of the Pilobolus company, back in 1971.

The artistic team use dancers instead of puppets, back-lit to create silhouettes against a variety of screens both large and small, to tell a whimsical tale of a young girl’s subliminal fantasies.  They create an endless array of characters and backdrops: of people, animals, flora, crustaceans, mythical creatures, buildings and a variety of inanimate objects, which assemble themselves magically and then dissolve.  Interspersed with the dream-like effects that this process creates are sections where the dancers emerge from behind the screens to perform downstage in normal lighting.

The choreography in these front-of-screen sections utilises Pilobolus’s signature acrobatic movement and weight-sharing partnering to create beautiful sequences of hypnotic, lyrical dance.   One such segment show-cases a down-trodden band of jaded circus performers who only execute their tired tricks at the behest of a whip-cracking ring-mistress performed with ferocious disdain by Krystal Butler. However these interludes are all too short, as the main focus of the work clearly lies in creating shadow performance.

Lauren Yalango gives an extraordinary performance as the young girl who like Peter Pan is tricked by her shadow into entering the bizarre world of Shadowland.  Her ability to effortlessly switch identities between herself and her alter-ego Dog Girl is impressive, as is her superb technical strength.  As she meanders through a series of vignettes in a state of altered physicality, she encounters many tricksters who seem intent on doing her harm.  But she emerges relatively unscathed, following an amorous encounter with a centaur, in which she dances a slightly dark ménage-à-trois trio with the two dancers who embody the mythical creature.

Nathaniel Buschbaum is a commanding presence in a number of different roles throughout, but all the dancers of the company perform with unstinting energy and enthusiasm.  The underlying wit of the work is its strength and ensures its populist appeal.  But the superb music score by David Poe weaves a spell all of its own, creating further layers in an already dense construct.

The large audience on opening night signalled their unbridled appreciation with numerous curtain calls, prompting a hilarious Slice of Heaven response from the performers.

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