How can one describe movement? Something so purely visual, sensual and interpretive made of lights, sounds, limbs and emotions needs to be experienced for the impact of the performance to be fully and wholly grasped. So, too, it is difficult to describe light. A simple sense that, from vibrant and bright to soft and dull, can affect mood and atmosphere to a great extent but cannot be put into the proper words. So, on May 9 at the Mainstage in the Spingold Theater Center when I prepared to watch the Brandeis Theater Company's Movement Light Project, I was met with a difficult question. How does one review something so visual and interpretive? Luckily, the fears inside me easily subsided as the 12 performances were expertly performed, danced and acted. Each movement onstage felt collected and contemplated; with each step, the dancers/actors and actresses were in full control of their bodies and fully aware of the space between themselves and the others onstage. Exploring "images and themes based on heaven and hell, light and dark, good and evil, life and death and various opposing themes that are reflected in ... the duality of human nature," as Prof. Susan Dibble, the chair of the Theater Arts department, described the performances in the program, cannot be so easy to portray onstage without any plot or vocals, but all of the performances were excellently executed and quite intriguing.While each and every dance was interesting and deep, my favorites were titled "Snakes and Ladders," "Withdrawal" and "The Secrets of Hell, Keeping Secrets to Keep Heaven." I found that the performances that had either lyrical songs to which the dances related or elaborate costumes and sets were the ones that were most easily interpreted, and therefore those were the most powerful for me. While performances such as the opening dance, "Heaven and Hell," featured incredible choreography by the graduate actors, I often found it difficult to understand the dualities these performances were attempting to explore when they were enhanced only by sporadic bouts of classical music. "Snakes and Ladders," the fourth dance of the show, was the first that blended acting, movement and emotion together in a way that I could relate to. Choreographed by Jesse Hinson (GRAD) and lighted by Julie Rautenstrauch (GRAD), the performance played out a cruel game of musical chairs to the very specific vocals and crescendo of Radiohead's song "Sit Down. Stand Up." As the tension in the music grew, so did the worry and need of the performers to be in a chair until total madness broke out with nobody to "arrange us," as the song demands. The chaos of withdrawal and need for order that they had just broken away from explored a scary and thought-provoking theme: Do we sometimes need to be controlled to survive?

On the theme of withdrawal, the aptly titled "Withdrawal" gave a scary look into addiction and the sad results of too much dependence. Ben Rosenblatt (GRAD), who was also the choreographer, and Equiano Mosieri (GRAD) stunningly portrayed an entire spectrum of desire, attachment, longing, need and withdrawal through just one simple blue shawl. The soft lighting designed by Jake Bray (GRAD) used an earthy green backdrop to show tranquility that soon turned into madness. Throughout the performance, the cast members wrapped themselves in the blue shawl, slowly becoming more and more trapped until the shawl was taken away. The need for the shawl overcame the addicted, and with one loud boom, the performance ended but with only one of two very addicted cast members standing. The performance was powerful and impactful and left a lasting impression.

"The Secrets of Hell, Keeping Secrets to Keep Heaven" was by far the most relatable on so many levels. Dealing with the all-too-present issue of adultery, the performance, choreographed by Japonica Brown (GRAD) and lighted by Chesapeake Westveer (GRAD), opened with two apparently normal couples on opposite sides of the stage passionately grasping each other to Luther Vandross' song "If Only for One Night." Soon it was revealed that these were not two couples but one couple, a man and a woman, who had both cheated on their partners. As the title insinuates, the rest of the time the two partners were dramatically laying next to each other contemplating the benefits and major drawbacks of revealing the burden they had created for themselves. The performance was highly physical, emotional and dramatic and created an eerie emotional and moral question. What if, sometimes, it is better to keep secrets than to tell the truth?

The performance with the most incredible lighting was the second of the show, titled "Dis." Choreographed by Rob McFadyen (GRAD) with lighting design by Westveer, the performance used lighting to create a depth and effect onstage I was not expecting that instantly impressed me. Opening to a shadow of a bird, it was soon revealed through slow and subtle lighting cues that the image on stage was not a shadow nor a bird, but instead a person whose peace was thrown into gradual chaos. The darkness of the stage combined with the slow lighting cues really lent to the performance's deep emotion.

While I have only highlighted a few performances, every single performance of the show was no less than incredible. The skill and body control of so many performers was astounding, the way lighting was used to so accurately portray calm with cool and earthy tones or anger with harsh and vibrant reds was eye-popping and the choreography was extremely well-thought-out. While each performance, from the very dark "The Moment Before" to the clown-riddled goofy and comedic finale, "Dance of Death," differed from the others significantly, the central idea of opposing themes continued throughout the production, and it was executed with apparent perfection and ease.