Robert Wilson's 'Dorian' to Make Asian Debut at International Arts Festival
"Dorian," by the late American theater master Robert Wilson, is making Asian debut this week at Theater YOUNG during the 25th China Shanghai International Arts Festival.
Wilson, who passed away last year, commanded a visual theater language entirely his own. Like a stage architect, he composed light, color, space, sound and the performer's body into rigorously structured compositions.
A hand raised slowly, or a beam of light suddenly cutting into the darkness, each could convey meaning beyond the spoken word.
"Wilson's artistic practice was never about creating a so-called personal method or school," said Christof Belka, manager of Robert Wilson's estate.
"What mattered to him was how best to present the ephemeral art of live performance to the audience," Belka noted. "Our team's job is to honor the artist's wishes while balancing the work's vitality with public expectations, so that more people can witness these extraordinary stage moments."
"Dorian" is a signature work of Wilson's late "visual theater" period. Taking Oscar Wilde's "The Picture of Dorian Gray" as its narrative source, the work deconstructs and reassembles beauty, youth, desire and decay, weaving real figures and events from art history into its fictional fabric.
The life of the painter Francis Bacon, the novel's protagonist, and the fate of writer Wilde unfold in interwoven strands on stage.
Actor Christian Friedel said the production is not a faithful adaptation of Wilde's novel but uses it only as inspiration.
"Wilson's working method was to build the stage space and movement structure first, then add the text. The actors would then pour their own lived experience into that established framework," he explained.
This solo piece, widely acclaimed in Germany, was tailor-made by Wilson for Friedel. Friedel also starred in "The Sandman," another Wilson work that came to Shanghai in 2018.
If you go:
Date: October 16-17, 7:30pm; October 18, 2pm
Ticket: 180-880 yuan
Venue: Theater YOUNG
Address: 1155 Kongjiang Rd, Yangpu District
杨浦区控江路1155号
