SHADOWLAND to Play State Theatre, 17-20 June

Shadowland, the ground-breaking new performance by internationally acclaimed dance troupe Pilobolus, is best described as part shadow act, part dance, part circus and part concert. For the first time in Australia, with more than 100 choreographic works performed in over 64 countries, Shadowland will be performing in Sydney at The State Theatre on Tuesday, 17 June - Friday 20 June 2014.

As the first theatrical event of its kind to tour the globe, Shadowland incorporates multiple moving screens of different sizes and shapes to create an evening-length performance that merges projected images and front-of-screen choreography.

The story is a surreal experience of a young girl's sensational world as she comes of age. Created in collaboration with lead writer for the popular animated series SpongeBob SquarePants Steven Banks, Shadowland is a universal and intimately portrayed experience that is both intensely dramatic and comedic.

It is set to a rhythmic original score by the popular American musician, producer, and film composer David Poe, whose poetic work for Shadowland ranges from ballads to hard-driving rock numbers that lift the audience out of its seats. His much-loved songs illuminate the themes and visuals of this fascinating story and world.

The physical vocabularies of Pilobolus works are not drawn from traditions of codified dance movement but are invented, emerging from intense periods of improvisation and creative play.

Shadowland was conceived and created by Pilobolus after several years of experimentation of the short shadow form. The result is a mixture of Pilobolus' signature style and innovative new forays into new media. Indeed, from an artistic standpoint, the new work incorporates Pilobolus' legendary approach to modern dance combined with high-energy, fast-paced, multi-media innovation.

Pilobolus is a modern performance company, founded in 1971, that to this day wears its revolutionary stripes on its sleeves. In keeping with the energy and spirit of its biological namesake-a phototropic fungus that thrives in farmyards-the company has continued to grow toward the light, expanding and refining its unique methods of collective creative production to assemble a repertoire of over 100 choreographic works. It teaches its group-based creative process to performers and non-dancers alike through popular, unique educational projects and programs. While it has become a stable and influential force in the world of dance, Pilobolus remains as protean as ever, looking forward to the next 40 years of collaborating on the future. In 2007, the creative services team at Pilobolus created and presented six acclaimed performances during the 79th Annual Academy Awards, as well as producing a series of original segments for The Oprah Winfrey Show and LateNight with Conan O'Brien.

After its renowned shadow theatre performance on the 79th Annual Academy Awards,
Pilobolus embarked on the creation of an evening-length movement-theatre piece titled Shadowland. To date,Shadowland has performed over 200 shows world-wide, and is currently touring extensively around Europe.