Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui's Noetic and Icon at Teatro dell'Opera di Göteborg in Turin

Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, the Belgian-Moroccan choreographer, presented two works with the Göteborg Operans Danskompani in Turin. In Noetic, inspired by mathematician Randy Powell's principle that nothing in the physical world moves in a straight line, dancers in black suits and stilettos move through geometric formations, using flexible carbon-fiber rods created by visual artist Antony Gormley to form shapes like spheres, tunnels, and atoms. The piece explores intuition and interconnection, with live taiko drumming and vocals. In Icon, Cherkaoui uses three tons of clay as a malleable material, co-created with Gormley and costume designer Jan-Jan Van Essche, to examine iconoclasm. Dancers manipulate the clay into helmets, masks, crowns, and totems, evoking rituals of creation and destruction. The score blends Eastern sounds, French ballads, and Italian folk songs. Critic Giuseppe Distefano notes that while visually striking, Icon feels somewhat confusing and distant.