American dance sensation heads for The Lowry

Apr 30 2008 by Michael Green, Chester Chronicle

US DANCE sensation Stephen Petronio Company will bring Manchester’s Queer Up North International festival to a spectacular conclusion when they perform for the first time to North West audiences.

Set to contemporary music, this extraordinary dance company present three UK premieres with specially-commissioned music from Rufus Wainwright and Fischerspooner, and songs by Antony Hegarty, Nico Muhly, and Lou Reed.

Beauty and The Brut is set to an original score by art-rock heroes Fischerspooner, while Antony Hegarty’s (Antony and the Johnsons) haunting voice is the thread running through This is the Story of A Girl in A World, a piece consisting of five interrelated works.

The triple-bill is completed with the inspirational Bloom, set to a commissioned score by Rufus Wainwright and accompanied by Manchester Youth Choir.

Stephen Petronio and his company will also be undertaking a two-day educational residency working with Salford’s youth dance company, Commotions.

Petronio, who is widely regarded as one of the leading dance makers of his generation, founded Stephen Petronio Company in 1984.

The company has since performed in over 26 countries and received international acclaim for the development of his unique movement language and ground-breaking choreography.

His collaborations with artists from the field of music and visual art are legendary, and include work with Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Beastie Boys, Anish Kapoor and Cindy Sherman.

The Stephen Petronio Company will be at The Lowry in Salford Quays on Sunday, May 25 at 7.30pm. Tickets £21.50-£10. Ring 0870 787 5793 or visit www.thelowry.com.