Such is the perspective of global fame and artistic respect that the affable Wilson, at 65, can now recount that and many other anecdotes with a grin. The product of a highly disciplined Christian upbringing, Wilson's early years were spent trying to please his emotionally distant mother and demanding father. But his sister Suzanne attests to how the directing impulse came early for little Wilson, who enjoyed corralling and instructing pliant playmates. Wilson's later work with mentally challenged children and disabled creative partners demonstrated his interest in nonverbal and alternative means of communication.
Wilson's inspired approach to the theater and to dance have not diluted over time, as seen in director Katharina Otto-Bernstein's engrossing documentary about Wilson's life and art Absolute Wilson (New Yorker Films). Copious interviews with Wilson show the origins of his idiosyncratic point of view. Wilson recounts the often difficult path that led a reserved, gay Texas kid with learning difficulties and an artistic bent to become a celebrated voice in experimental theater.
In some cases Wilson is able to draw a direct line from his personal history to his creative work. Wilson recounts how childhood visits to a black housekeeper's church or his early, misguided desire to become a lawyer were life experiences incorporated into his performances. Some of the most interesting aspects of Absolute Wilson come in brief glimpses of his work, from contemporary productions like a 1990 collaboration with musician Tom Waits "The Black Rider" to some of Wilson's earliest experimental work during the Sixties with his company the Byrd Hoffman School of Byrds.
In charting Wilson's career, Otto-Bernstein is careful not to overplay the triumphs in lieu of the failures. Alongside the enormously successful collaboration in 1976 with Philip Glass "Einstein on the Beach," came the kind of disappointment in 1984 that might crush a lesser man. Wilson's ambitious multimillion dollar, 12-hour long production "The Civil Wars" featuring David Bowie commissioned for the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics was ultimately canceled by the city. Otto-Bernstein does the service of showing the great difficulty, even for an established artist, of thriving in an America where funding for the arts is often meager.
Some of the most illuminating and rewarding aspects of Absolute Wilson detail the difficulties and successes in Wilson's work, alongside the testimony of collaborators like Tom Waits, Glass and writer Susan Sontag who attest to his working methods and reputation.
Missing, however amidst the fascinating biographical portrait of Wilson is a more in-depth reading of individual works. Alongside the praise for Wilson's contributions Absolute Wilson might have benefitted from a clearer explanation for those unfamiliar with Wilson's work, as to how and why his work is so groundbreaking and distinctive.
For more information about Absolute Wilson, visit New Yorker Films.
by Felicia Feaster
