Inbal Pintos «Shaker»

Grayish-blue light floods the set of “Shaker,” the latest creation by Inbal Pinto and her partner Avshalom Pollak, to reveal a set with three toy houses on snowy ground. An older man in a striped suit turns the handle of a wind machine, giving rise to an unsettling sound effect that accompanies the work throughout the evening and creates a Nordic mood on stage.

The old wind machine is a theatrical device normally used backstage to create the illusion of blustery conditions.

Pinto and Pollak walk a thin line here, toying with illusions, creating a make-believe reality in a play world which nevertheless generates true moods with emotional content, and enhances the believability of the theatrical experience, much like a good craftsman who is as proud to show the process of his craft as the finished product.

In contrast to previous works, such as the inventive and colourful “Oyster” and “Boobies,“ which earned them widespread recognition, “Shaker” comes off as a more subdued, almost monochromatic work that relies on a more contained use of its stage means, retaining a delicate balance between its poetic visual images, puzzling dance lexicon and the resulting surreal ambience.

The title ...