National Theatre of London on the Big Screen: John

Olivia Flores Alvarez January 1, 2015 4:00AM

[
          {
            "name": "Related Stories / Support Us Combo",
            "component": "11591218",
            "insertPoint": "4",
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "4"
          },{
            "name": "Air - Billboard - Inline Content",
            "component": "11591214",
            "insertPoint": "2/3",
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "7"
          },{
            "name": "R1 - Beta - Mobile Only",
            "component": "12287027",
            "insertPoint": "8",
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "8"
          },{
            "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Inline Content - Mobile Display Size 2",
            "component": "11591215",
            "insertPoint": "12",
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "12"
          },{
            "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Inline Content - Mobile Display Size 2",
            "component": "11591215",
            "insertPoint": "4th",
            "startingPoint": "16",
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "12"
          }
          
            ,{
              "name": "RevContent - In Article",
              "component": "12527128",
              "insertPoint": "3/5",
              "requiredCountToDisplay": "5"
            }
          
        ]

DV8 Physical Theatre’s John, the story of one man’s tragic life, fills the screen with shocking, provocative images. Based on a real story, John is a mix of movement, theater and film that would be beyond most other companies. With Lloyd Newson at the head of DV8, it becomes a piece of thrilling avant garde theater. Part of the National Theatre of London on the Big Screen series of broadcasts, John has two screenings at Sundance Cinemas Houston.

Hannes Langolf depicts John, a broken Everyman. His ugly/beautiful movements capture the precarious nature of a life in chaos. Played out on a revolving stage (designed by Anna Fleischle), the story seems to be a never-ending emotional loop. Horror gives way to hope; hope is replaced by self-destruction; empathy becomes fear; the cycle repeats itself. We see John’s violent childhood, his descent into drug addiction, his life in prison and his time in gay saunas. Each tragedy is rebuffed with an offer of redemption. The 75-minute work features a sound track by Gareth Fry. 12:30 p.m. Saturday; 7:15 p.m. Monday. 510 Texas. For information, visit ntlive.nationaltheatre.org.uk. $20.
Sat., Jan. 3, 12:30 p.m.; Tue., Jan. 6, 7:15 p.m., 2015