Don Hertzfeldt Short ‘Billy’s Balloon’ Turned Into Dance Performance (Exclusive)

Adapting animated films for the stage is no longer just the domain of feature films like The Lion King and Shrek. Italian dance/theater troupe eVolution has adapted an unlikely animated short for live performance: Don Hertzfeldt‘s Billy’s Balloon. The performance, which is a part of their new show ElectriCity, uses dance, puppetry, and black lights to bring to life Hertzfeldt’s harrowing 1998 short about a boy who is viciously attacked by a red balloon. Hertzfeldt, who confirms to Cartoon Brew that he gave the Italian group permission to stage the piece because “it was too strange to not see happen,” says that it is being performed in sync to the film’s soundtrack.

ElectriCity is currently touring in Italy and will be performed elsewhere in Europe later in the year. A trailer for their last show Firefly can be seen below.