Synetic Theater's Wordless Legend of Sleepy Hollow Haunts Olney Theatre Center
Just in time for Halloween, Synetic Theater has brought its acclaimed movement-based take on Washington Irving's classic ghost story to the Mulitz-Gudelsky Theatre Lab at Olney Theatre Center, and critics agree it is one of the most thrilling ways to spend an October evening in the region. Founded in 2001 by Paata and Irina Tsikurishvili, Synetic is known for telling great stories without a single spoken word, using dance, acrobatics, mime, and music instead. In "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," that approach proves to be the perfect fit for a tale built on dread, shadows, and the thunder of hooves in the dark woods.
Adapted by resident dramaturg Nathan Weinberger and directed by Paata Tsikurishvili, this version takes Irving's playful, lightly menacing story and turns up the terror considerably. It also turns the legend inside out. The show opens on a Hessian soldier and his horse cut down in the Revolutionary War, and from there the Headless Horseman becomes a figure of longing, grief, and even tenderness, while the real cruelty lives among the humans. Ichabod Crane, traditionally the nervous schoolmaster, is reimagined here as a brutish bully with a dark secret, while his rival Brom Bones emerges as the more compassionate of the two. The result is a haunting story of loss, love, revenge, and perhaps redemption, told from the monster's point of view.
Reviewers were especially taken with the performances. Vato Tsikurishvili, who also serves as fight choreographer, delivers a commanding and unsettling Ichabod, a man whose menace becomes more skull-like as his fate closes in. Philip Fletcher's Headless Horseman has drawn particular praise for conveying everything from fury to heartbreak without ever showing his face. Maryam Najafzada is a standout as the Horse Spirit, prancing and tossing her hair like a mane and performing a striking solo amid a cloud of smoke. Sia Li Wright dazzles as Katrina Van Tassel, Tony Amante brings warmth and heart to Brom, and the entire company proves to be as skilled at acting as they are at dancing.
The production's physicality is breathtaking. Bodies tumble across the stage, performers fly off tables and chairs, and heads go missing at a startling rate. A galloping armored horse, brought to life as a puppet by members of the ensemble, is a highlight from the very first scene. Irina Tsikurishvili's choreography has been singled out as consistently gorgeous, from the lively tavern dances to a sensual pas de deux, and many in the audience have compared the evening's mix of daring stunts and wordless storytelling to a Cirque du Soleil show with a sinister edge.
The design work adds tremendously to the chills. Phil Charlwood's spare set of movable trees is used ingeniously, sliding past a fleeing Ichabod as he runs through the forest and concealing the many beheadings the story demands. Eric Teague's Revolution-era costumes are full of clever details, including masks with ghoulish faces on both front and back that allow the ensemble to twist into nightmarish shapes as spirits torment Ichabod. Koki Lortkipanidze's howling, eerie original score sets the mood from the opening blackout, and one of the show's most memorable images comes when a severed head stares out at the audience from atop a crumbling piano. The lighting moves from deep gloom to the warm glow of the village tavern and back to total darkness, keeping the audience on edge throughout.
"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" runs approximately 90 minutes with no intermission and is recommended for ages 13 and up. Performances continue through Nov 1, 2026, at Olney Theatre Center, 2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Road in Olney, Maryland, with evening shows Wednesday through Saturday at 7:00 pm and matinees Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday at 1:00 pm.