BASIL TWIST.
Creative Innovator. Award-winning Puppeteer (including MacArthur & Rome prizes)
ARTIST BIOGRAPHY.
A native of San Francisco, Basil Twist is a third-generation puppeteer. Original work includes Symphonie Fantastique, Petrushka, Dogugaeshi, Rite of Spring, Hansel & Gretel, Arias with a Twist La Bella Dormente nel Bosco, Sisters Follies, A Streetcar Named Desire (La Comédie Française, also co-director), Titon et l'Aurore (with Les Arts Florissant at The Opera Comique and Theatre Royal de Versailles), The Book of Mountains and Seas by composer Huang Ruo and Twist as designer/director. He is the puppetry designer/director of My Neighbour Totoro, currently running in the West End. Most recently; he designed and staged the sets and puppetry for The Monkey King with The San Francisco Opera. Past honors include an Obie, Henry Hewes, Doris Duke Performing Artist, Creative Capital Award, Asian Arts Council, multiple UNIMA and Bessie Awards, a Guggenheim fellowship, a MacArthur Fellowship, Rome Prize and a Roth Family Scholar. Director of HERE's Dream Music Puppetry Program.
ARTIST INTERVIEW.
"Puppetry is this amazing blend of acting, technical precision, and visual artistry. It touches every part of the production – rehearsal, lighting, video, the set itself. It’s the crossroads of everything, which is fitting – Puppetry will always have a place in storytelling because it taps into something primal – our innate ability to believe in something brought to life before our eyes."
TRUE MAGIC
It is like listening to music with your eyes.
New York Times
GALLERY.
Discover photos and videos from Basil's work.
Headshot by Elliott Verdier. Photos and video are provided courtesy of the artist.