“Cage’s text is charming, often amusing, often quotable, equally often intentionally infuriating and profoundly thought provoking. The composer was in a period of transition, moving away from somewhat traditional composition to the making of music that incorporated chance elements and that treated silence with devout respect. [...]
Wilson makes exceptionally beautiful things. His stage props belong in museums. Yet his theater is non-narrative, only understood by experiencing it, living it.’All I know about method,’ Cage writes at the end of ‘Lecture on Nothing,’ ‘is that when I am not working I sometimes think I know something, but when I am working, it is quite clear that I know nothing.’ Others might call that enlightenment. Wilson, sublimely, showed why.”
— Mark Swed in the Los Angeles Times, October 16, 2013
As a homage to revolutionary composer John Cage, Robert Wilson performs Cage's Lecture on Nothing, one of the central texts of twentieth-century experimental literature. The production has been described as being an "acoustically and visually inspiring approach to the philosophical and poetic text" which Cage based on a complex time length scheme similar to some of his music.
About Robert Wilson
Since the late 1960s, Robert Wilson's productions have decisively shaped the look of theater and opera. Through his signature use of light, his investigations into the structure of a simple movement, and the classical rigor of his scenic and furniture design, Wilson has continuously articulated the force and originality of his vision. Wilson's close ties and collaborations with leading artists, writers, and musicians continue to fascinate audiences worldwide.