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MY NEIGHBOUR TOTORO RETURNS!

Opening Night November 30th

Runs through 23 MARCH 2024

Find your spirit with the “awe-inspiring” (Time Out) and “dazzling” (Guardian) My Neighbour Totoro, as this five-star, award-winning production returns to the London Barbican for a strictly limited 18-week season. This “utterly beguiling” (The Stage) and “jaw-dropping” (Metro) staging of the celebrated 1988 animated feature film is brought to you by the Royal Shakespeare Company and Executive Producer Joe Hisaishi, and adapted by Tom Morton-Smith (Oppenheimer).

Book now for this unmissable, “huge, healing hug of a show” (The Stage) through the Barbican website.

PUPPETS IN THEATRE

Bringing New Life to the Stage

Tue 13 Feb 2024

Basil Twist and Phelim McDermott bring extraordinary creatures to life on stages. They are known for using innovative puppet techniques, from wind and water to newspapers and sellotape. Their current work on My Neigbour Totoro creates magic on the Barbican's stage. Cheryl Henson facilitates a conversation. Discover what makes puppets and imagination so effective in live theatre today.

For More information

BOOK OF MOUNTAINS AND SEAS

"This is splendid puppetry, imbued with poignancy and the pulsing, drum-driven drama of mythic quest." New York Times, USA

Chicago & West Coast Premieres

January 26 -28, 2024

April 2024 various dates

Book of Mountains and Seas is a work of vocal-theater for 12 singers, two percussionists, and puppeteers. It is inspired by the ancient Chinese compilation of early myths of the same title, which was first transcribed in 4th century B.C. Over the years, these mythological stories have become part of Chinese written and oral history, shifted and reshaped to match contemporary times. Book of Mountains and Seas is a 21st-century adaptation through the lens of our modern-day relationship with the natural world. The creation stories conjure a sense of respect and awe for the environment, and the water stories challenge us to be good stewards of the natural resources we have been given.

FOR COMPLETE INFORMATION

SYMPHONIE FANTASTIQUE FILM

AVAILABLE FOR SCREENINGS NOW Twist revisited his legendary masterpiece with live accompaniment by the virtuosic Christopher O'Riley playing the exquisite Liszt transcription for concert piano and in a significantly larger aquarium in 2018. Symphonie floated and swirled for a critically lauded and sold-out six-month run, fortunately allowing the finest performances to be captured in front of, behind, and inside the 1,000-gallon water tank by Twist's own hand. The resulting film is not just a document of a performance but rather an artistic expression in its own right. It weaves imagery as seen by the audience with the unseen backstage ballet of the puppeteers and the emotional synergy of the live musical performance.

Contact Barbara@tandemotter.org for booking information

The film's World premiere was at the 2019 World Puppetry Festival in Charleville Mezieres, France. This is Basil Twist’s first full length film.

ART OF BASIL TWIST EXHIBITION

Basil’s work has reached audiences beyond the walls of the theater in part through Richard Termine's singular photography. From the intimate underwater abstraction of “Symphonie Fantastique” to the gigantic “Rite of Spring”, Richard's camera has uniquely captured Basil's development as a puppeteer, designer, and director. This exhibition is presented by Tandem Otter Productions and has been funded with major support from The Jane Henson Foundation and Cheryl Henson. Available for bookings now. Email Barbara@tandemotter.org for more information.

From the The Art of Basil Twist exhibition at The Chicago International Puppet Festival 2023

Since coming to New York over 23 years ago, Basil Twist has garnered an international reputation as an audacious designer, director and performer. He creates iconic, visionary puppetry worlds with a remarkable range of style and scope appearing in intimate nightclubs to large orchestra halls. He is a sought after collaborator for theater, dance, opera and film. His utterly unique approaches have been recognized with multiple awards and fellowships; critical acclaim and have furthered contemporary artistry and the technical craft of puppetry.

"No theatre artist in New York is showing more poetic force or technical skill than the puppeteer Basil Twist." -The New Yorker


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