As part of the 2016 NY Coil Festival, Baryshnikov Arts Center and Performance Space 122 present Helen Herbertson and Ben Cobham’s Morphia Series, January 12-16. Morphia Series is an immersive, theatrical dance experience performed for only 12 audience members at a time. Deriving inspiration from Morpheus, the Greek god of dreams, the work focuses on the space of dreams within each of our subconscious selves, existing somewhere between the ordinary and the metaphysical.

The audience is led into the space, through darkness, with a morsel of food and a small portion of wine. We are invited to eat and drink; doing so in the dark heightens the senses in preparation for a chilling and thrilling dreamscape that features a box in the distance, lit from the inside—the space of dreams. A moving figure within is at times a distant silhouette, at others a glowing, ethereal body. Ben Cobham's lighting design creates suspense. Awaiting the performance, sitting in the dark, one can hear even the swallow of wine, the crumple of a napkin, or even the scratch of a beard. But as we enter the dream, recorded text and the sounds of nature envelop us, tingling our spines.

I won't give away the piece's surprise, which consists of innovative design elements. Suffice it to say that we become closer to the subject, becoming the box’s forth wall as Herbertson’s nude figure curves, rotates, and frigidly wipes one hand with the other, reminiscent of Lady Macbeth (“Out damned spot!”). She comes to stillness with her focus down and mumbles, bringing the moment to a close. Temporally displaced, as if waking from sleep, we are swept away and the dream fades. Once again, staring into darkness, the audience remains so quiet, so still—both recollecting what was and wondering what might be.