Dance: Walking on air

Corps Extrêmes Extreme Bodies
by Chaillot – Théâtre National de la Danse
conception Rachid Ouramdane
with Nathan Paulin, Nina Caprez, Airelle Caen, Hamza Benlabied, Yamil Falvella, Löric Fouchereau, Peter Freeman, Ann Raber Cocheril, Belar San Vicente, Maxime Seghers, Seppe Van Looveren
music Jean-Baptiste Julien • video Jean-Camille Goimard
lighting Stéphane Graillot • costumes Camille Panin
Sadler's Wells, London • 23-24.May.23

A mix of extreme athleticism and acrobatics performed with a dance sensibility, this show from Paris' Théâtre National de Chaillot maintains a wonderfully mesmerising tone. Unfolding at a gentle pace, it's a demonstration of strength and balance that often boggles the mind. And it flows across the stage with an unusual fluidity, speaking to the human need for both individual achievement and a little help from our friends.

Upon a climbing wall that fills the stage, a film is projected documenting French highline artist Nathan Paulin, who holds the world record for the longest high-wire walk at 2.2km (nearly 1.4 miles), as he traverses a vertiginous cliff. The camera swirls dizzingly around him and sometimes sits on the ribbon with him while he describes in voiceover the freedom he feels in the sky. Then Paulin appears on a line above the climbing wall, performing a series of skilled balletic moves right above us.

Then he takes a seat and watches as eight climbers appear at the top of the wall, descending with almost uncanny elegance before performing a series of choreographed acrobatic moves on the stage. Their liquidity often makes them look like waves swelling and crashing, as they throw each other into the air, up onto the wall and onto each other's shoulders, tumbling on the floor. They also begin interacting with Paulin on his wire.

Another film is narrated by Swiss rock-climber Nina Caprez, who climbs the stage's wall alongside herself on the cliff's face, dangling precariously from an overhang as Caprez recounts a fall and rescue. This then informs the continuing group performance, which becomes more entwined and emotive as these athletes put their fierce physicality to use without ever seeming to strain a muscle. Their ease and precision are so beautiful that we forget how difficult these movements are.

With its dreamlike tone and a steady flow of goosebump-inducing stunts, this is an often breathtaking combination of dance with sport. So what it says about human physicality and the intrepid spirit of adventure is fascinating, revealed in a visceral way that takes us up into the sky with the performers.

For details, visit SADLER'S WELLS >

photos by Pascale Cholette • 23.May.23