‘Pepperland’ Dance First Major Work Announced For Arts & Ideas

‘Pepperland” is the name of the music-loving country under siege in the animated Beatles movie “Yellow Submarine.” “Return to Pepperland” was a never-released (though much bootlegged) Paul McCartney solo album recorded in the mid-1980s.

Now there’s another “Pepperland” to contend with: an hourlong modern dance piece by world-renowned choreographer Mark Morris. It’s coming to Connecticut in June.

The International Festival of Arts & Ideas will present Mark Morris Dance Group’s “Pepperland,” a dance piece inspired by The Beatles’ “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band,” June 21 and 22 as part of the 2018 festival in New Haven. This is the first major announcement of the 2018 festival, which presents dozens of shows, concerts, talks and other events over a two-week period in the early summer.

“Pepperland,” described by Morris as “a comment [on] and a rethinking of this profound cultural artifact,” consists of new arrangements of seven songs from the hallowed 1967 “Sgt. Pepper” album plus new music composed by Ethan Iverson of the neo-classical ensemble The Bad Plus. The production features 15 dancers, in colorful costumes designed by Elizabeth Kurtzman. The music is performed by a chamber orchestra of unusual orchestration: theremin, soprano sax, trombone, piano, organ, harpsichord, percussion and vocals.

Arts & Ideas co-commissioned the creation of “Pepperland.” Another of the many co-commissioners was the city of Liverpool, where “Pepperland” premiered in May 2017. The show’s first U.S. performance was last month in Seattle. Before hitting Arts & Ideas in June, “Pepperland” will be performed at two California theaters in May.

The Mark Morris Dance Group has performed at the International Festival of Arts & Ideas twice before, in the operas “Dido and Aeneas” in 2009 and “Acis and Galatea” in 2015.

Tickets for “Pepperland,” which will be performed at the Shubert in New Haven June 21 and 22 at 8 p.m., are already on sale for $20 to $125; $300 opening night tickets include a gala reception.

The full schedule of the 2018 Arts & Ideas festival will be announced April 26. The festival runs June 9 to 23 in and around downtown New Haven. More information can be found at artidea.org.

This article has been corrected to change the opening description of Pepperland in the “Yellow Submarine” movie.