Review | Taoism and minimalism meet in Tao of Glass, moving work about one man’s love of theatre and Philip Glass’ music
- Drama, puppet show, talk show – Tao of Glass is all of these and more, the tale of one man, lead performer Phelim McDermott, and his love of Philip Glass’ music
- Beneath its lighthearted surface are messages about failure, death and how to accept them. Deeply personal, sometimes pedantic, it is never less than powerful
Tao of Glass, co-commissioned by Hong Kong’s New Vision Arts Festival from composer Philip Glass and performer-director Phelim McDermott, is difficult to define.
Part live drama, part concert and part puppet show, the work – which has had its delayed Hong Kong premiere four years after it was first performed in Manchester in the UK – also resembles a talk show in format.
At its most basic level, Tao of Glass is about McDermott’s love of theatre and his obsession with Glass, the minimalist guru who composed 10 pieces for the two-and-a-half-hour show.
After the house lights dimmed, a “latecomer” made his way down the aisle and had a great deal of trouble finding his seat. It was not until the middle-aged man went up on stage that the audience realised this was McDermott. He proceeded to share with theatregoers how he went from being a young theatre enthusiast to an Olivier Award-winning director, and his abiding love of Glass’ music.
He was an engaging storyteller, using mime and the help of three puppeteers-cum-actors to bring key moments to life, and he delighted the audience with jokes made at the composer’s expense – how he used to drive his parents crazy by playing Glass’ music on repeat, and how he once bored to sleep Glass, “the man who has put so many to sleep in concert halls” with his minimalist music.
