Royal Albert Hall, London – 15th May 2022
Reviewed by Steph Lott
5*****
“Space. The final frontier…”
Humankind has always looked at the heavens and wondered about the night sky. Well before technology made it possible to leave the safety of Earth, however, space exploration had already captured the minds of many people, not only aircraft pilots and scientists but also writers and artists. The strong hold that space travel has always had on the imagination explains why space exploration has been a common and enduring theme in literature and art. But it’s not just the desire to explore that makes us look up – it’s the beauty of mystery of the night sky above us that captivates us.
Last night I saw a brand-new special event – Ilan Eshkeri’s Space Station Earth. Created in collaboration with The European Space Agency, this music event from award-winning composer and show creator Ilan Eshkeri, not only allows the audience to see what an astronaut sees but is also an attempt to create something of the emotional and sensory experience that an astronaut undergoes when leaving the Earth and entering space, through a combination of music and images never seen before.
The show is part of a European tour and last night was to my knowledge the only UK date currently listed. Each show begins with an astronaut sharing their experience live on stage, and last night it was the turn of Tim Peake; in December 2015 Tim became the first British astronaut to visit the International Space Station and conduct a spacewalk during his 6 month mission.
I really enjoyed the Q+A session between Tim and Ilan; Tim shared his unique experience of space travel and described the visceral feeling of space travel. What I found most impactful was his statements regarding what astronauts call “the overview”; the awareness of our blue and green sanctuary, hanging in the blackest black of space, like a jewel. So beautiful. So fragile.
In terms of the show, there is no dialogue or narration; there is a circular narrative journey of sorts and the audience is immersed in sound and visuals. I found it stunning. There are visual juxtapositions that expand and contract your horizons, views that you have never seen before. Comparisons of nebulae and patterns in desert sand. The music swells and surges with a kind of tidal rhythm that takes you along with it. I was moved to tears at certain points. But would struggle to say why.
What I was struck by is that I thought I would learn something about space by going to this show. What it does however, is strike a powerful emotional chord and make the viewer take another look downwards, at the beauty of our home – the Earth.
At the end of the show there was a standing ovation and a special surprise treat for us. We were treated to a performance by Tim Peake on guitar!
The message you leave the show with is essentially an environmental, and possibly, a spiritual one. Like those who visit the European Space station, we cannot just be passengers on Earth. We have to be its crew and take care of it and each other.
I hope that this show becomes more widely available. The emotional impact it has is compelling and I think it could really help in the understanding of why Earth is so precious to us all and how we all have a part to play in taking care of it. We did all come from the same place. We were all born of supernovas. In the words of astronomer Carl Sagan, we are all stardust.