BASIL TWIST

"A gorgeous..cavorting..dance...it will come to you as far as you let it in" - The New York Times

"A hypnotic and hermetic spectacle" - Newsday

"Intimate and spectacular, a haunting abstract piece about lost traditions" - The New York Sun

"Twist is at once reviving a lost tradition and breaking new creative ground." - The Japan Times

Twist unfolds an intimate, abstract, contemporary journey of images and emotions influenced by the rarefied tradition of Japanese dogugaeshi stage mechanism technique and his own encounters with the remaining rural caretakers of this once popular art form. This hour-long performance features original shamisen compositions created and performed live by authorized master musician Yumiko Tanaka. The multidisciplinary production blends Twist's signature puppetry with video projection design by Peter Flaherty, Lighting design by Andrew Hill and sound design by Greg Duffin.

Dogugaeshi VIDEO excerpt

VIDEO of puppeteers visiting a traditional Dogugaeshi stage in Inukai.

Dogugaeshi received its world premiere at the Japan Society in November of 2004.

Also presented at

as part of The Japan Society's Centennial Season (2007)

Kanazawa 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art (2007)

Kyoto Performing Arts Center Kyoto University of Art and Design (2007)

Yokohama Arts Foundation (2007)

Tokushima, Cultural & International Affairs Division (2007)

Dogugaeshi received:
a 2005 Bessie Award

"Dogugaeshi" was originally commissioned by The Japan Society in 2003. The World Premiere was presented at The Japan Society in New York in 2004 and subsequently presented in 2007. Major support was provided by Creative Capital, Doris Duke Charitable Trust, The Jim Henson Foundation, and MAP Fund for the creation of this work.