Basil Twist's Abstract-Puppetry 'Rite of Spring' to Make New York Debut in October

Basil Twist, the master puppeteer, director and designer, will bring his all-Stravinsky program The Rite of Spring to New York for the first time in October 2014 as part of Lincoln Center's White Light Festival.

The performance by 12 puppeteers and the Orchestra of St. Luke's led by guest conductor Jayce Ogren debuted at Carolina Performing Arts at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill last year in conjunction with the centennial of Stravinsky's iconic Le Sacre du Printemps (The Rite of Spring). Performing groups and institutions all over the world marked that anniversary with new productions, re-imaginings and re-releases.

Basil Twist's The Rite of Spring, billed as his "biggest, most ambitious creation to date," revolves around his kinetic fabric sculptures. It is a "ballet without dancers" in which, he says, "the space comes alive." Twist loves "abstraction in puppetry, the…boiled-down essence of materials coming to life…pure puppetry, as opposed to puppetry that is in the service of something else."

The program also includes Twist's take on Stravinsky's Pulcinella Suite and Fireworks.

Rounding out the creative team are Ayumu Poe Saegusa (lighting design), Greg Meeh (special effects design), Daniel Brodie (projection design) and Lynne Buckson (costume and textile design).

Performances are October 15-18 at the Time-Warner Center's Rose Theatre. There will be a pre-concert discussion with Twist on October 17.

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TagsBasil Twist, puppets, puppetry, Stravinsky, Igor Stravinsky, Rite of Spring