From the primordial, then, to life forms moving molasses-like, with lighting designer Chu-Hsuan Chang’s vibrant color palette giving an anime-like feeling at times, while the women continued to create gorgeous vocals over pre-recorded tracks. 

Of note: Live murmuration sounds were recorded in Cavan, Ireland by James Nolan, and while this unschooled lover of avian song wouldn’t know an Irish murmuration from a Canadian one, it was good to know that this deep research still happens in the world of performance art—or in the world-at-large at all!

Seriously, this was decidedly performance art. And while Zaletel was named collaborative choreographer, the movement was so minimal—it was less than Butoh-like—that without the accouterments of sounds and film projections (the notes also state that the projected murmurations were generated with a computer program based on Craig Reynolds’ Boids algorithm (1986), the work would be considered neither dance or choreography. 

Movement direction yes, and while Kim must be applauded for her attention to detail, specificity and commitment, there was little dance-making to speak of, while a director might also have helped in this arena. 

In other words, while some in the audience may have been bemused, there was plenty to savor about the production. To wit: Like a Wagnerian soprano—or two, three or four—these were Valkyries of another order. Clothed in black and lying prone, head-to-head, the quartet could have been a mutant “Rosemary’s Baby,” but more playful, if that’s at all possible, with the exorcist—Kim, herself?—doing the devil’s bidding as she rose, sheathing herself in the white tarp, the trio clinging to her.