“When Light Bends” is a play, illusion and extravaganza rolled into one experience. Sleight of hand, science, music and mystery push us to question our place in the universe and the fluidity of our existence.
Presented in anticipation of the solar eclipse, “When Light Bends” will take place Friday to Sunday, March 22-24, at Highland Center for the Arts, 2875 Hardwick St., Greensboro.
The production is framed around Albert Einstein’s struggle to complete his theory of relativity, and Arthur Eddington’s fight to confirm that theory by observing the positions of the stars during the 1919 solar eclipse.
Einstein hypothesized that several stars would appear in different locations during an eclipse due to how the gravity of the sun bends their light. Eddington, noting that a total solar eclipse would occur on May 29, 1919, on the island of Principe off the coast of Africa, and having worked through Einstein’s equations on his own the year before, resolved to travel to the island and provide concrete proof.
The news of Eddington’s observations spurred acceptance of Einstein’s theories and put in motion a series of scientific discoveries including the ever-expanding universe and the endless vacuum of a black hole.
This collaboration between two scientists on opposite sides of World War I is paired with a celestial fable of two lovers pursuing a closer connection as they rush to reach the path of totality during the 2024 eclipse — before it’s too late.
Music riffs on the science of relativity and the audience is immersed in interludes of magic and illusion. In parallel tales our protagonists are forced to update their beliefs and uncover hidden truths, in the face of the complex, the simple and the sublime.
“When Light Bends” features Justin Townsend, a Tony award-winning set and lighting director, illusionist Steve Cuiffo and Obie award-winning director Elena Araoz.
It was created and commissioned by Media Art Xploration with the original concept by Kay Matschullat.
For more information, go to highlandartsvt.org.
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