David Byrne's American Utopia delivers "an experience unlike anything else" (Billboard) and marks a major cultural milestone in the worlds of music and theater. Innovative pop/rock icon David Byrne (Talking Heads, Here Lies Love) shares the spotlight with a diverse ensemble of 11 musical artists from around the globe.
Together with production consultant Alex Timbers and choreographer Annie-B Parson (his collaborators on Here Lies Love), Byrne and ensemble deliver "a marvel of staging and motion" (Chicago Tribune) that's as surprisingly poignant as it is supremely funky. Don't miss this "thought-provoking example of the power of live music" (Forbes).
American Utopia began as an album that David Byrne released on Nonesuch Records in March 2018. The recording was his first to reach number 1 on the Album Chart and was also his first to reach the Top Five on the Billboard 200 chart. The theatrical concert, which includes songs from American Utopia along with songs from Talking Heads and his solo career, played more than 150 dates in 27countries over nine months in 2018.
The show has a futuristic look, all right, and by presenting everyone dressed the same, conceived as part of a whole, the vibe is resoundingly, Ted Talk-y egalitarian. You might even say Byrne has evolved into a cooler, trimmer Bernie Sanders, directing an ensemble of enlightenment and inclusivity, welcoming to all. Even a cover of the Janelle Monae protest song 'Hell You Talmbout' is performed with the collective sense that a community of caring, decent people can solve this problem together.
Enter the opposite side, person by person, through the magically porous, shimmering gray curtains that encase the stage. The musicians and backup singers materialize as a multiplying, multinational ensemble. Annie-B Parson's exacting, exultant and altogether astonishing choreography often have them moving in a single, tidal wave. Yet each of these gray-clad beings is irreducibly individual, and even with Byrne center stage, you want to watch everyone else all the time, too.
2021 | Broadway |
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