After the performance, the curtain was raised to reveal dinner tables onstage with a backdrop projection of moving clouds.
That was reinforced by the sky-and-sea backdrop projection, the sandy textures of suede mixed with denim and a pattern of dancing dolphins.
The sound was otherwise excellent, the volume just right, and the backdrop projection of the performance with amazing special effects, mixed and edited live, set new standards for stadium rock.
"Finding Center," a New York première by Parsons, takes its title and backdrop projections from a series of pastels, by the artist Rita Blitt, of ovals and circles, shapes that have previously inspired ingenuity in the choreographer.
The emotional concentration that a single actor might bring is missing, and Breuer's attempt to direct our emotions using backdrop projections of rain and angels is just tacky.
There are a few missteps: some backdrop projections during the immigrant's astral trip are comic-strip corny; a wonderfully funny dance by Maoist Red Guards leaves one puzzled about whose side they are on; and a song ridiculing the Dalai Lama, sung by a Tibetan collaborating with the Chinese, begins "Hello, Dalai" and the tune is, yes, Jerry Herman's.
The set, consisting of a row of revolving planks around an axis that rises and falls, takes on different formations and serves as a backdrop for sophisticated projections.
Craig McDean's images of models shot in front of big Duratrans images of International Style architecture brings to mind the rear-screen projection backdrops employed by Ms. Sherman and also Laurie Simmons in the 1980's.
The impressive side wall of theater lights, the dark rear-stage panels that open to reveal a gold-lighted backdrop, a few projections, some minimal decorations that descend from the fly space and of course a full orchestra, still leave the show to be performed on a bare stage with only a handful of props.
The translucent Monae bounced around the actual MIA angled against spiral backdrop, which was projection-mapped with a swirling, fluctuating stream of swirling graphics.
The strobe-like projections' backdrop provides the NYC audience with plenty of space to sit and reflect on Ikeda's large-scale work.
