Dance: Recollections may vary

Jess & Morgs
Deepfake
director-choreographers Jessica Wright and Morgann Runacre-Temple
performers Kennedy Muntanga, Rebecca Bassett-Graham, Cathy Grealish, Dylan Springer, Tommi Sutton, Marshall Stay, Grace Broodie, Freya Burdon-Watson, Eva Rose Fellows, Evelien Van Den Hondel, Claire Goose, Habib Nasib Nader
writer Jeff James • video design Dan Light
set/costumes Milla Clarke • lighting Simon Bennison
Sadler’s Wells East, Stratford • 1-3.Oct.26 ★★★★

Dazzling on multiple fronts, this fast-paced hour-long show unfolds its politically charged narrative using a mesmerising combination of dance, sound and technology. As the title suggests, the story involves manipulated video, and it plays out with strikingly visual trickery that includes green screens, camerawork, projections and inventive lighting. Meanwhile, the show makes important points relating to political subterfuge, asking salient questions about why the media feels increasingly untrustworthy.

Creators Jessica Wright and Morgann Runacre-Temple, aka Jess & Morgs, keep the tension high from the start, as we watch the Prime Minister (Kennedy Muntanga) preparing to be interviewed by TV journalist Katie (Rebecca Bassett-Graham) about a disastrous series of events the night before. Not only is there a videotape showing him in a state of undress, but he arrived suspiciously late to a state dinner, where he was disheveled and erratic. "Witnesses say you were drunk," Katie says. "No, the video is a fake," he replies.

Dialog (voiced by Habib Nasib Nader and Claire Goose) is mixed into the textured audio track, while the performers lipsync it with broad physical movements that often break out into full-on dance pieces. These include solos and duets, plus a range of elaborate group numbers accompanied by eight performers wearing green-screen bodysuits. One of these carries a handheld camera to capture striking angles on the action, often following performers backstage.

We watch all of this on a splintering array of screens. There's the live action on-stage, surrounded by bright green. And on a giant screen above, we can see the combined images, with backgrounds and even second or third versions of the PM as he puts another spin on his account ("I can't be in two places at once!"). The way these interact is mind-bogglingly complicated. And there are also jaw-dropping sections in which the performers interact with projections of themselves that are being shot live from other angles.

Intriguingly, the choreography is pointed and rather academic, never emotionally engaging. Instead, it reflects the push and pull between a politician and a journalist who have grown accustomed to doing this dance. The mix of modern choreo with ballet is playful, as one of the PM's excuses involves attending his daughter's dance recital. Re-enactments of various situations are riotously amusing, leading to a huge disco break in the final act. And through all of this, there's a driving search for the truth beneath the sound bites. 

For details, JESS & MORGS >

photos by Foteini Christofilopoulou • 1.Oct.26

Dance: Everybody shout ¡Olé!

Yllana
Flamenc Oh!!
direction David Ottone and Juan Ramos
artists David Bastidas, Raquel Ortega, Raúl Ortega, Anabel Moreno, Luis Gallo
choreography Carlos Chamorro • costumes Tatiana de Sarabia
set Carlos Brayda • lighting Juani González Vega
Peacock Theatre, London • 30.Sep-10.Oct.26 ★★★★

Those gifted, cheeky artists at Yllana (see also The Opera Locos) bring their lively and hugely entertaining homage to flamenco to London, fresh from the Edinburgh Fringe. Of course, these performers are experts at the craft, dazzling the audience with their wonderful sense of rhythm and movement. But they are also having a lot of fun telling a silly story that has some serious kicks as it explores personal identity, family connections and legacy.

A voiceover paints a portrait of a flamenco family, with the imperious patriarch (David Bastidas) deploying his soaring voice while tapping the cane that symbolises his authority. His wife (Raquel Ortega) is a feisty dancer who rules the roost, while their son (Raúl Ortega) and daughter (Anabel Moreno) demonstrate seriously fancy footwork and armography. Both siblings hope to inherit the cane, and Dad needs to make a decision. He is clearly disappointed with his son, but his daughter is throwing herself at the steaming hot guitarist (Luis Gallo) who just strutted into their lives with his luscious locks of hair and shockingly modern musical sensibilities.

Within this soap opera, each character is a hilarious bundle of attitudes and personality quirks, adding amusing touches to even their most impressive displays of flamenco prowess. These are top-notch performers who continually wow us with their talents, even if the show is designed for entertainment rather than audacity. Ortega and Moreno get a chance to deliver stunning riffs of taconeo as the brother and sister battle for their parents' approval. And Gallo's astonishing guitar work is augmented by his character's riotously preening physicality.

There are also deeper themes that have something more profound to say about Spanish culture, such as how the father longs to explore his feminine side, but feels trapped in his machismo. Finally he takes the plunge and tries on a ruffly red gown, surprised that his wife embraces this. Watching them throw their trains around is thrilling, leaving us wanting much more of this. There's also a nice edge to the way the son seeks approval from his father, while the daughter refuses to settle for anything but the top spot.

Through all of this, modern music continually creeps in, with lovely riffs from standards like Summertime, Moon River and Beautiful, plus exhilarating renditions of Maniac and Purple Rain. Cultural touches include some romance, mysticism and even a bit of magical realism. There are also of course snapping castanets, swirling capes and a full-on boxing ring dance off for the cane. Characters continually flirt with the audience, which is frequently coaxed into clapping to the beat or shouting ¡Olé! And even if it's perhaps a little too crowd-pleasing, the barnstorming curtain call sends us out with a smile.

For details, SADLER'S WELLS >

photos by Pablo Lorente • 30.Sep.26

Critical Week: Winter's coming

Things are cranking up as the festival season begins to segue into awards season, so there are a lot of screenings in the diary these days for films that have made a mark somewhere but are yet to be released to general audiences. I caught up with one of the biggies this week, Cristian Mungiu's Palme d'Or winner Fjord, starring Sebastian Stan and Renate Reinsve. It's a stunner - provocative and thoughtful as it explores religion and culture. 

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Naza • Digger • Knife
Child • Kikuyu Land
The Last First: Winter K2
ALL REVIEWS >

There was also the biopic Tenzing, tracing the life of the Sherpa who with Edmund Hillary achieved the first summit of Mt Everest. It's a beautifully made film, with terrific performances by Genden Phuntsok, Tom Hiddleston and Willem Dafoe. It was also nice to attend a reception with the cast and crew. Other films this week included the haunting thriller Child, a strikingly well-made film from Luxembourg, and the gently observant Spanish drama The Portuguese House. There were also a couple of docs: more mountaineering in the hugely involving The Last First: Winter K2 and the fascinating, important Kikuyu Land, exploring the legacy of colonialism in Kenya. I also saw live performances of Deepfake at Sadler's Wells East and Flamenc Oh!! at the Peacock theatre.

Coming up this next week, I'll be watching Mikey Madison in the sequel The Social Reckoning, Mahershala Ali in Your Mother Your Mother Your Mother, Mark Ruffalo in Being Heumann, Lesley Manville in Winter of the Crow, Ryusuke Hamaguchi's award-winning All of a Sudden, a French comedy titled Comédie Française and a live performance of Acosta Danza's Cuban Baroque.

Dance: A loose-limbed connection

National Dance Company Wales
Blue | Glas
choreographers Theo Clinkard, Alesandra Seutin
dancers Alys Davies, Andrew Lennox Scott, Ed Myhill, Jill Goh, Isabel Farrelly, Niamh Keeling, Riz Golden, Sonny Connor-Bell
music Alan Stones, Randolph Matthews
lighting Zerlina Hughes, Elanor Higgins
Sadler's Wells East, Stratford • 24-26.Sep.26 ★★★

Using the colour blue as an expression of "sky, water, freedom and depths", NDC Wales brings two pieces to Sadler's Wells East. The first is a revival from 2012 and the second is all-new. Both have an open-handed emotionality, with loose choreography that seems somewhat undisciplined but still highlights the serious physical skills of the dancers. So while they are demanding to perform, with several impressive sections, they are also far too free-flowing to have a proper impact.

Using the colour blue as an expression of "sky, water, freedom and depths", NDC Wales brings two pieces to Sadler's Wells East: the first is a revival from 2012 and the second is all-new. Both have an open-handed emotionality, with relaxed choreography that may appear somewhat undisciplined but still highlights the serious physical skills of the dancers. So while they are demanding to perform, with several impressive sections, they are also far too free-flowing to have a proper impact.

Theo Clinkard's Ordinary Courage opens with six dancers, barefoot in multicoloured streetwear, engaging in group choreo on a white stage in complete silence. Eye-catching and intriguing, there's a loose-limbed ease to their movement, and a nice sense of connection between them. Then as a piano score comes in, they remove their jackets and stare at the audience before shifting into manoeuvres that echo shifting ground or blasting wind.

All of this is expressive and very acrobatic, with powerful leaps and lifts (especially in duets with two men) but no real sense of focus. The interaction suggests a dramatic story that remains just out of reach, depicting flailing loneliness, grief, support and affection. It's complex and intricate, and performed expertly by these likeable dancers, but everything seems a bit random, punctuated by frequent blackouts. And the appearance of a large bear is both visually stunning and rather perplexing.

The second piece, Untamed by Alesandra Seutin, is shorter and rather more offbeat. The stage is black now, and the dancers are wearing off-white athletic outfits, sometimes accessorised with stringy lifevest-style tops. The dancers jump and run, often in achingly slow motion that looks rather awkwardly sinister. The lighting is deeper and darker now, as the performers writhe and crouch, then burst into action. This kind of choreography requires a lot of strength and balance, and the dancers are well up to the challenge. But the overall effect is oddly harsh and elusive.

With their notable physical control and fearless approach, these gifted dancers dive fully into both of these pieces, bringing out ideas and emotions. So there are dazzling moments along the way, combining masterful dance moves with a full commitment to the work. But the oddly unstructured choreography leaves the bigger picture blurred in the background, never quite arriving at a meaningful point. So in the end we feel like we've only seen the potential, rather than a fully formed show.

For information, SADLER'S WELLS >

photos by Jorge Lizalde, Mark Douet  • 24.Sep.26

Critical Week: The world in his hands

Awards season is cranking up earlier than usual this year, kicking off even before the Toronto International Film Festival finished. So screenings have kept me on the run this week. The biggest was the world premiere royal performance of Digger, with Tom Cruise, Alejandro G Iñárritu and the cast on hand to watch this astonishingly enormous movie. People will love or hate it, but it's undeniably full-on. I also had screenings of two Toronto titles: the hugely crowd-pleasing biopic I Play Rocky features an amazing performance by Anthony Ippolito as Sylvester Stallone makes of his classic underdog movie. And Rhys Ifans and Laura Linney star in Onwards and Sideways, an involving romance that knowingly takes on Parkinson's.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Forgotten Island
Boorman and the Devil
ALL REVIEWS >

Elsewhere, Emilia Jones and Nick Robinson star in Charlie Harper, which gets a little over-emotive as it spirals around a love story. Sophie Thatcher and Charles Melton lead Nicolas Winding Refn's fantastical futuristic thriller Her Private Hell, which looks amazing but doesn't hold together. From Belgium, the gorgeously animated drama In Waves is a superbly moving true story about surfers. I also enjoyed De Gaulle: Liberté, the expertly made conclusion of the two-part biopic starring Simon Abkarian as the French general, this time covering the final years of WWII. The German satire Babystar is witty and very pointed as it sharply lampoons social media culture. The Filipino black comedy Filipiñana is simply stunning: funny, skilfully shot and darkly powerful. And Juliette Binoche directed In-I in Motion, tracing her collaboration with choreographer Akram Khan on a stage show. She presented the screening herself, and held a terrific Q&A at the end. I also had a live performance of the National Dance Company Wales' show Blue | Glas.

Coming up this next week, I'll be watching Sebastian Stan in the Cannes winner Fjord, the dramatic thriller Child, the Spanish drama The Portuguese House and three documentaries: The Last First: Winter K2, How Deep Is Your Love and Kikuyu Land, plus live performances of Deepfake and Flamenc Oh!

Dance: Move, members, move

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
Legacy
choreography Alvin Ailey, Ronald K Brown
dancers Leonardo Brito, Michael Cherry, Patrick Coker, Shawn Cusseaux, Sarah Daley-Perdomo, Caroline T Dartey, Isaiah Day, Solomon Dumas, Mason Evans, Samantha Figgins, Sebastian Garcia, James Gilmer, Ashley Kaylynn Green, Jacquelin Harris, Xavier Mack, Renaldo Maurice, Corrin Rachelle Mitchell, Jesse Obremski, Kali Marie Oliver, Tyrone Reese, Deidre Rogan, Hannah Alissa Richardson, Mahalaya Tintiangco-Cubales, Isabel Wallace-Green, Christopher R Wilson, Dandara Veiga
music Duke Ellington, Chuck Griffin, Leon Russell
costumes A Christina Giannini, Jane Greenwood, Ves Harper, Omotayo Wunmi Olaiya, Ursula Reed
Sadler's Wells, London • 15-19.Sep.26 ★★★★★

Nearly 70 years after its formation in 1958 New York, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater brings a programme of vintage pieces to Sadler's Wells (plus new works on other nights). These classics feature Ailey's distinctive mix of jazz, blues and gospel vibes, drawing on his Southern heritage with echoes of West African culture. This is gloriously expressive choreography, a soaring blend of ballet and modern movement that elevates the audience.

The Legacy programme opens with excerpts from Night Creature (1974), moving to the groovy bounce of Duke Ellington's big band score. Dressed in sparkling dresses and skin-tight body suits, the dancers evoke a buoyant night out, prowling and shimmering. Two witty and sexy movements feature expansive arms, swaying hips, weightless footwork and slyly flirtatious eye contact, ending on a high-energy note that evokes New York's ballroom scene. 

This is followed by two solos: first, Yannick Lebrun performs to Donny Hathaway's rendition of A Song For You (1972), mixing physical strength with achingly deep emotion. Then on a red-hued stage, a sparky Constance Stamatiou dances an excerpt from Cry (1971), a colourfully funky piece that ripples with tough-minded determination and a celebratory spirit.

Grace (1999) is the one piece here choreographed by Ronald K Brown, and it pulses with party-like R&B rhythms as colours of both the stage and costumes shift around the company. It opens in an earthy mood with tribal and gospel flourishes, as the performers playfully interact to create a growing sense of exuberance with kicks and leaps. It's a glorious expression of inner spirit featuring solos, duets and full group moments that are packed with clever touches. And it reaches a series of triumphant highs.

The final section is Ailey's signature piece Revelations (1960) which uses traditional spirituals to explore deep emotional connections. Watching this is like being taken to church, with insistent beats that burrow into our souls as the dancers perform expressive, evocative choreography to both plaintive prayer-like songs and more pulsing numbers like Fix Me, Jesus and Wade in the Water. It's packed with breathtaking movement and balance, running, spinning and lifting, both in full-company formations and individual breakouts like Xavier Mack's dazzling I Wanna Be Ready solo.

It closes with the triumphant, sun-washed staging of Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham that gets us bouncing in our seats as if we're sitting along the edge of the church hall, waiting for our turn to get up and strut our stuff. No matter how many times we see Revelations, it always feels fresh and alive, encouraging us to express our feelings with full-bodied joy. It's a visually spectacular show, and it radiates love throughout the room.

For information: SADLER'S WELLS >

photos by Christopher Duggan, Paul Kolnik, Danica Paulos,
Glyn Stanley, Tyler Whitman • 16.Sep.26

Critical Week: A man and his dog

I jumped straight back into the thick of things in London after my nine days in Venice. There are extra screenings these days for press, running in parallel with film festivals and getting a jump on awards season. There are also the big releases to watch, such as Heart of the Beast, a Brad Pitt survival movie in which he and his faithful dog are stranded in the Alaskan wilderness. It looks amazing, and has strongly vivid ideas running through it, but the story feels very constructed.

BEST OUT THIS WEEK:
Queen at Sea • Knife
April X • Sunny Dancer
The Beast of Mossy Bottom
ALL REVIEWS >

Shaun the Sheep is back for The Beast of Mossy Bottom, another silly, hilarious romp involving mischievous barnyard animals and their hapless farmer, this time playing on classic monster movie tropes. Call My Agent! The Movie catches up with the beloved characters from the TV series, now facing many, many obstacles as they make a movie. It's very funny, with some great actor cameos. Bella Ramsay is terrific in Sunny Dancer, a teen camp comedy with a cancer-drama edge to it, plus James Norton, Jessica Gunning and Neil Patrick Harris. Monica Dolan shines in the true Irish drama of The Lost Children of Taum, another grim tale about horrific Catholic homes for unwed mothers. For dance fans, Scottish Ballet have produced These Violent Delights, an inventively cinematic take on Romeo and Juliet. I also saw a stunning live dance production of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's Legacy.

Coming up this next week, there's Tom Cruise in Digger, the biopic I Play Rocky, Nick Robinson in Charlie Harper, Laura Linney in Onwards and Sideways, Sophie Thatcher in Her Private Hell, the animated drama In Waves, the German satire Babystar, the Juliette Binoche/Akram Khan collaboration In-I in Motion, the conclusion of the two-part biopic De Gaulle: Liberte, and the documentary Pulp: What Do You Do for an Encore. I also have a live performance of Blue/Glas.