"Water Stains on the Wall"/ Photo: LIU Chen-hsiang
RECOMMENDED
A slanted stage clad in white is the blank page upon which choreographer Lin Hwai-min draws strokes of remarkable beauty. His brushes: the lithe, razor-thin, flawlessly controlled bodies of the Cloud Gate Theatre dancers. The title comes from a conversation between two Chinese calligraphy masters of the Tang Dynasty—one who takes inspiration from dramatic summer clouds, the other from water stains on the wall. Lin evokes both images in ever-shifting plays of light and shadow across the dancers’ gauzy white trousers and ensconces them in the dancers themselves, who seem to hover at different levels on the raked stage. The music, by Japanese composer Toshio Hosokawa and played on traditional Asian instruments, creates a complementary aural tension between the rippling slowness and lightning speed the dancers shift between with equal ease and fluidity. Pulse, breath and time are redefined when Cloud Gate moves. (Sharon Hoyer)
At the Harris Theater, 205 East Randolph, (312)369-8330. Friday, October 28 and Saturday, October 29, 8pm. $25-$65.
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