‘The Night Falls’ to premiere at Montclair State theater

MONTCLAIR, NJ — The world premiere of “The Night Falls” at Montclair State University’s Alexander Kasser Theater, 1 Normal Ave. in Montclair, presented by PEAK Performances, will be Thursday, Feb. 9, and Friday, Feb. 10, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Feb. 11, at 8 p.m.; and Sunday, Feb. 12, at 3 p.m. 

According to a press release, the show is about “a dance performance that integrates opera and a Floridian roadside setting. All across America, people on the brink of despair begin to have the same nightmare. A song will not leave their heads. This dangerously beautiful music lures lost souls to a kitschy roadside built around a sublime grotto, ‘home of the world’s eeriest echoes’ and the concert hall of The Sirens. With choreography that dramatizes the leap of empathy between bodies and music that channels the polarities of surrender and resistance, ‘The Night Falls’ shows the visceral power of art to brace us against the abyss.”

The performance was created from the collaborations of director and choreographer Troy Schumacher, author and lyricist Karen Russell, and musician and lyricist Ellis Ludwig-Leone.

“One of the beauties of this double casting is showing the disparity between how you see yourself and how you outwardly present,” Schumacher said. “And in order for this to dramatically work, dancers have to be fully present in their bodies and singers in their voices. Separating them into these different planes, in the way Karen does in the libretto, is so brilliant: these characters have had their voices ripped out of them, metaphorically. In casting, we wanted to find two people for each character: not people who look alike, but rather two people whose complementary interpretations create a character and bring out their essence.” 

To purchase tickets and for more information, visit peakperfs.org or call 973-655-5112.

  Montclair State University