Dance: Feel the heat

New Adventures
The Car Man
director-choreographer Matthew Bourne
with Will Bozier, Ashley Shaw, Harry Ondrak-Wright, Anna-Maria De Freitas, Danny Reubens, Eleanor McGrath, Harrison Dowzell, Karishma Young, Jarrod McWilliams, Tanisha Addicott, Cameron Flynn, Rae Miller, Xavier Andriambolanoro-Sotiya, Serena McCall, Nicholas Shikkis, Jamie Duncan-Campbell, Tim Hodges
music Terry Davies featuring Rodion Shchedrin’s Carmen Suite (after Georges Bizet’s Carmen)
conductor Benjamin Pope • sets/costumes Lez Brotherston
lighting Chris Davey • sound Paul Groothuis
Sadler's Wells, London • 28.Jul-29.Aug.26 ★★★★★

This show premiered in 2000 and has been revived several times since, but this is the first time I've seen Matthew Bourne's notoriously sexy spin on Bizet's Carmen. Intriguingly, he largely only adapts the opera's tone, and the intensity of its plot, while spinning a new story that has its roots in American noir cinema. It also, of course, has the intriguing whiff of a queer twist in the tale. The result is thrilling theatre, a dazzling dance that needs no dialog or subtitles to keep us gripped to the feverish story.

It's set in the 1960s in a small Midwestern town called Harmony, as the hunky drifter Luca (Will Bozier) catches everyone's attention on arrival. He takes a job in a mechanic shop owned by Dino (Danny Reubens), whose feisty wife Lana (Ashley Shaw) immediately starts flirting with him. But Luca also has an eye on young Angelo (Henry Ondrak-Wright), who is bullied by the other guys. And Lana's sister Rita (Anna-Maria De Freitas) is also drawn to Angelo.

The soapy plot swirls around how Lana and Angelo are both smitten by Luca, leading to explosions of violence and a miscarriage of justice over the course of nine months. This is revealed through Bourne's expressive choreography, which plays cleverly on emotions that can't be contained. So the movement is exhilarating and sometimes menacing, a pungent tangle of passion, jealousy, innocence, yearning and revenge. 

Members of the large ensemble throw their bodies into the fray, with fully extended movement that often takes the breath away, creating a range of relationships around the edges while the five central figures jostle around each other. So the atmosphere is properly steamy, from the opening after-work shower sequence to a languishing summer evening during which these hot, young people can't be bothered to control their desires. This rowdy camaraderie is thoroughly entertaining, with sparky banter expressed through physicality rather than words.

The complex set helps to create an entire world, from the garage to a diner, nightclub and prison block. Solos and duets are simply gorgeous, evoking layered emotions with achingly cool visual flourishes. Among the show-stopping set pieces, there's a witty, telling pantomime and a very messy drag race. The tone veers expertly from lusty to playful to darkly grisly. And the darker second half charges headlong into a conclusion that's as grim as we expect it to be, creating a cautionary tale about not letting the libido completely control our lives. As if.

For information, SADLER'S WELLS > 

photos by Johan Persson • 31.Jul.26

Dance: Across the sea

We Caliban
concept, choreography & direction Shobana Jeyasingh
dancers Harry Ondrak-Wright, Holly Vallis, Raúl Reinoso Acanda, Oliver Mahar, George Gregory, Tanisha Addicott, Gabriel Ciulli, Tabitha O’Sullivan
text consultant Priyamvada Gopal • dramaturg Uzma Hameed
composer Thierry Pécou • sound Fred DeFaye
sets & costumes Mayou Trikerioti
lighting Floriaan Ganzevoort • projection William Duke
Sadler's Wells East, Stratford • 21-23.Apr.26 ★★★

There's a strikingly loose visual style to this fascinating take on Shakespeare's The Tempest, as dancers energetically dive into swirling choreography that's more expressive than precise. This helps to draw out personal insights in a story that plays with a central theme of colonialism, specifically the superiority one culture can feel toward another. The impressive staging includes dazzling lighting and projections. And even if it feels both on-the-nose and rather elusive, the show is thoroughly gripping.

It opens on Prospero (Harry Ondrak-Wright), his daughter Miranda (Holly Vallis), his brother Antonio (Oliver Mahar) and their learned community. In a power struggle, Prospero and Miranda are set adrift, washing ashore far from home. In this foreign land, they encounter Caliban (Raúl Reinoso Acanda) and his own learned community. But Prospero and Miranda insist on teaching them their civilised ways, even as Miranda falls for Caliban, which is something Prospero is definitely not happy about.

The stretchy, spinning choreography features astonishing shapes and powerful lifts, performed slowly for maximum impact. It's also intriguingly rough around the edges. Dancers sometimes link together, entangled in sexy formations. There's scrappy violence, and group sequences that are almost, but not quite, in unison. It's eye-catching and often thrilling to watch, especially as intense emotions churn between the characters. One provocative touch is to have the performers carrying books to symbolise culture. Of course Prospero believes his book is better than the Caliban books, while Miranda tames the "savage" Caliban using art, including ballroom dancing lessons. But then, he also teaches her lusty moves in a tender, exploratory sequence.

Cool lighting designs augment the movement, surrounding the dancers with spotlights that bounce off a string curtain to create shimmering textures. The soundscape features music by Thierry Pécou, voiceover readings and snippets of dialog that accompany the on-screen text and video. A big storm brings these elements together with a dazzling array of light, sound and wind. And all of this reverberates with condescending colonial attitudes towards "uncivilised heathens". Against this, the earthy, warm-hued costumes have a hint of sci-fi about them, as if this is taking place on a planet Captain Kirk is about to beam onto.

Playing out through seven distinct scenes, there are highlights peppered throughout the show, most notably two superbly expressive duets involving Reinoso Acanda alongside Vallis and then Tanisha Addicott. With echoing movements, these feature impressively controlled displays of strength and balance. Then in the end, the plot continues into a rather chilly final sequence in which Prospero asserts his control. And the way the Caliban community is left changed forever is haunting.

For information, SHOBANA JEYASINGH DANCE >

photos by Foteini Christofilopoulou • 21.Apr.26