WHITE SWAN: ANTONY AND THE JOHNSONS

The Museum of Modern Art-commissioned Swanlights serves as mediation on light, nature and femininity from Antony and the Johnsons.

Taking the large-scale concert to an emotionally charged new level, Swanlights was conceived as a “truly transcendental experience for the audience,” according to

MoMA Curator at Large and Director of PS1 Klaus Biesenbach. Setting songs from all four of Antony and the Johnsons albums (Antony and the Johnsons, I Am A Bird Now, The Crying Light and Swanlights) to the symphonic arrangements of a 60-piece orchestra, Swanlights was originally created as a natural outgrowth of the singer’s successful The Crying Light performance at the 2009 Manchester Festival.

The collaboration makes sense of a level beyond the theatrical—Antony has exhibited his drawings in galleries in Belgium, London, Los Angeles and Turin, as well as at Milan’s Triennale. Building on a “crystal cave” theme created by set designer Carl Robertshaw, light artist Chris Levine and lighting designer Paul Normandale, acoustic and space challenges forced the performance to move from MoMA to the more expansive venue of Radio City Music Hall, allowing for a site- specific installation that not only elevates the music, but also serves as an art piece in itself.

“In Manchester, the wall for the sets was made of stretch fabric so they would flex, move and breathe and the lighting would enhance that,” explains Robertshaw, who has also worked with such diverse performers as Alicia Keys, Bjork and The Pixies.  “At Radio City, I’ve taken the idea a bit further and introduced the Fibonacci sequence—it’s the golden ratio and the numbering sequence of nature.  A spiral fits into the Fibonacci sequence as does the earth, everything from DNA to flowers.”

Having explored elements of what eventually grew to be Swanlights on Antony’s 2011 European tour, Robertshaw says that even die-hard fans of the artist should be prepared for an unexpected emotional experience. “You have to be there to see the light quality, feel the emotions and be drawn into the three-dimensionality of it,” he explains, “I had friend come to one of the shows in Italy and at the end of the show she was in tears because she was so overwhelmed. Anyone coming to the show will be taken on a journey for sure.”

Antony and the Johnsons, on Thursday, January 26, 2012, at 8:00 p.m. at Radio City Music Hall. For tickets, please visit RadioCity.com.