The most astonishing thing about the avant-garde dance company Pilobolus is that their performance at the Arsht reminded me of one universal truth—that life is constant motion. Even when we are asleep and are at our stillest moments, invisible electrons simultaneously spin and orbit around the nuclei of every atom in us and in the bed, the frame, the blankets and even the pillow we sleep upon—24/7 until the end.

Pilobolus

Pilobolus communicates this message through magic. The five new pieces shared with Miami audiences combined, to varying degrees, either and/or all of the elements of dance, theater, cinematography and even stand-up comedy to create a performance that mirrors the atomic energy that courses through life—even when we’re blind to it.

The performance began with “Licks”, which is a collaborative effort with Grammy Award-winning choreographer/director Trish Sie. 12 ropes and 6 dancers tease and tempt each other in a high-energy, high-powered ‘horseplay’ where dancers move wildly to a soundtrack that fuses modern music and traditional Northern Mexican border music.

In “The Transformation”, an excerpt from Pilobolus’ signature piece Shadowland, shadow play communicates the idea that humans are often blind, by choice, to what moves us. The invisible hand, however we define it, exerts enormous control over our lives, our movements, and plays a heavy hand in the decisions we make. Yet, what Pilobolus reveals through the gorgeous imagery of shadows is that we are not really blind to the invisible—we just choose not to see.

The two most stunning works were “Shizen” and “Day Two”, which drew the least response, mostly due to the duration of the works. After the show, a cacophony of whispers emerged—“beautiful, but way too long”—but that was the point. These two works reflected life after creation and our enduring connection with the natural world. Pilobolus’ dancers used their bodies, which appeared to be literally connected, to re-imagine what life would & could be if we were connected—physically, emotionally and spiritually with one another and to the earth.

[esc]

, a work based on the masters of trickery— Penn & Teller—pushed the performance into the realm of magic show, which pleased the audience and drew the greatest response. One male dancer was bagged and sealed inside a shipping crate. Another male dancer was bound and zipped inside of a duffle bag with a pair of red pajamas. Two male dancers, wearing leather bikinis, were chained and locked to a 13-foot tall stripper pole—their legs and arms bound with chains that were then wrapped around each other. One of the female dancers duct-taped another female dancer’s arms, legs and chest to a chair and then duct-taped a plastic bag over her head. The result—.

Don’t try this at home, of course, but go see Pilobolus tonight and see how it all plays out.

Final Pilobolus performance is tonight, October 26th at the Arsht Center. Tickets are $30-90 and can be purchased through the Arsht Center box office by calling 305-949-6722 or visiting www.arshtcenter.org.