By BRUCE DENNILL
Hidden Giants / Presented by Universe On Stage / The Mandela, Joburg Theatre, Braamfontein
Universe On Stage is a collaboration between physicist Dr Lucca Pontiggia and pianist and composer Yasheen Modi. The former narrates a script detailing the complex wonders and curiosities of different aspects of the universe, while the latter, seated at a concert grand, provides – alongside creative lighting ideas; brilliantly amplified sound effects and clear, thrilling visuals on a massive screen behind the performers – the dynamics that make this show and others in the pair’s repertoire far more than outsized lectures on widely appealing topics. Modi, for this two-performance run, is joined by violinist Siobhan Lloyd-Jones, giving an extra layer of sonic colour.
Hidden Giants is about black holes, a phenomenon that no less than NASA describes as “mysterious” and “not fully understood”. Pontiggia has 90 minutes to communicate – to a room full of astronomy rookies – enough science and technical data to frame this astonishing, bizarre concept, while never letting his audience get bored. Achieving that last goal is most of the reason for the presentation concept. This is the other end of the scale from a Powerpoint slide show. Whether you fully appreciate what Modi is doing, his music affects the collective emotion in the room. And cinema-level surround sound, plus a screen size to match, means there’s an element of being in the middle of a documentary film in which you’re cruising through space, watching light bend because of unseen forces and all the rest of the Einstein-level chicanery.
Scientifically, all is on point, and Modi’s lyrical and tireless playing is a highlight on the artistic side. If there are areas where improvement is possible, it is in the delivery – not the content – of the narration. Pontiggia is clearly a dazzling intellect (and sets an unfailingly upbeat tone), but he occasionally swallows the end of a word or performs in a way a scientist or a lecturer might reasonably be expected to, but which a full-time actor or voice actor would handle differently. Obviously, Pontiggia’s direct involvement is an integral part of the whole project, so changing his role is not an option, but there might be a scenario in which part of the script is delivered by a professional voice actor, adding a James Earl Jones factor to proceedings. Equally, while the script delivers on its mission to make the subject matter accessible, it could also be finessed to be a touch more theatrically appealing, bringing that aspect into line with the rest of the audience experience.
Whatever the case, though, a great way to learn. And a clever way to teach.
