And… the One, two, three, four! The Matrix is becoming a dance show directed by Danny Boyle
When The Matrix premiered in 1999, it shook the foundations of pop culture and spawned a seemingly endless supply of sequels, spin-offs, comic books, video games, and imitators.
More than 20 years later, we're still finding ways to milk that intellectual property dry, and Danny Boyle might just have discovered the greatest, and yet most logical, option yet.
The Oscar-winning filmmaker's agent has confirmed to EW that he is set to direct a "large-scale immersive performance" based on The Matrix and titled Free Your Mind at the newly founded arts venue Factory International in Manchester, England.
Warner Bros/Everett Carrie-Anne Moss
"Combining the hip-hop choreography of hundreds of dancers with the latest immersive design, Free Your Mind will take audiences on a thrilling journey through The Matrix and into a new realm of possibilities," Factory International said. "This eye-opening production will stretch across the building's ultra-flexible spaces, responding to them and harnessing the collective energy of the moment."
The Matrix franchise is of course known for its balletic fight choreography, so it's not a complete stretch of the computer simulation imagination to think it would make a suitable dance production.
Boyle is an interesting choice as well. Ever since winning an Oscar for directing Slumdog Millionaire — which did feature a splashy Bollywood-style musical number at the end — the British filmmaker has been trying his hand at basically whatever he wants: the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics, a Steve Jobs movie, a Trainspotting sequel, a lavish FX miniseries no one watched. He also began his career in theater, directing several productions for the Royal Shakespeare Company.
In other words, this should at least be better than The Matrix Revolutions.
Michael "Mikey J" Asante is composing the music for the show, and Kenrick "H2O" Sandy is choreographing. Boyle's longtime collaborator Tracey Seaward will produce, poet and playwright Sabrina Mahfouz will handle writing duties, and artist Es Devlin will provide large-scale sculptures.
Free Your Mind is slated to open Oct. 18, 2023, and run through Nov. 5.
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