I also saw PLAY WITHOUT WORDS and I loved the non-verbal story telling! The show was smart, clever, and visually engaging. At first I was a little disappointed that there wasn't a "pop" to the show - the piece seemed to exist on the same plane for the entire 2 hours. After thinking about, however, I realized that it was more of the exchange between the actors and audience that was lacking. We went to a Thursday matinee performance at which half the house was empty and the other half was mostly senior citizens. The audience genuinely enjoyed the performance but was reserved in its enthusiasm. I imagine that a more demographically mixed audience on a Sturday night might have been more vocal in its response nad hence would have contributed to a more charged energy in the theatre between the dancer/actors and the audience.

PLAY WITHOUT WORDS has come and gone, but I'm writing at this late date because the piece still resonates for me -- and I am definitely one of those people who would usually say she does not like "dance theatre."

First, I really loved the look of the piece -- and that it was double, treble, whatever cast -- at the same time.

But what really made the piece for me was the ESSAY in the program (reprinted from a London newspaper, I think) that talked about the original '60s films Matthew Bourne was inspired by -- all those gritty London films in the early '60s, before the Beatles, before London got to be so swinging! I've always loved '60s London, so I went home and put all the movies this writer mentioned on my NETFLIX list, beginning with THE SERVANT, the number one influence on PLAY WITHOUT WORDS. Brilliant! I'm still watching these films. Just finished ROOM AT THE TOP, starring Laurence Harvey -- the late father of bounty-hunter Domino, who just died of a drug overdose a few weeks ago.

Anyway, I wonder what it says about a piece when its full enjoyment is dependent on the accompanying essay? Score one for dramaturgy...