Scaffolding is not usually the prop of choice for a dancer but the opening number of Rambert's triple bill at Theatr Clwyd this week is a veritable Meccano set of movement, based on men at work.
The large box set reminds me of Room 101 in 1984 and the 12 workers in this box perform tasks - not quite as structured as in Orwell's dystopian world and with a little more purpose and flair.
Choreographed by Alexander Whitley the work is inspired by watching workers in a Chinese factory. Dressed in mundane and rather unflattering costumes the dancers, using metal poles, assemble and disassemble the set and change the lighting and angles.
The dancing is spellibinding as the troupe create new and interesting shapes and spaces - inevitably one is a ballet barre, another perhaps a goalpost, here a mirror, there a fair ride.
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Transfigured Night is a new work from double Olivier award-winning choreographer Kim Brandstrup, about the complex nature of love.
Dark secrets threaten the foundations of the relationship between dancers Miguel Altunaga, who bears more than a physical and Terpsichorean resemblance to his mentor Carols Acosta, and Simone Damberg Würtz.
As the secrets unfold, we are offered various scenarios - one where the consequences don't affect anyone - a light-hearted and happy duet between Liam Francis and Lucy Balfour and a more realistic outlook of acceptance but with a heavier heart. Altunaga makes you feel the weight on his shoulders and we recognise the effort he needs to do that happy handstand.
The Picasso-inspired The 3 Dancers is inspired by the tragic love triangle behind the artist's masterpiece The Three Dancers.
Choreographed by Didy Veldman three dancers in white depict tragic lovers with another three dressed in black as their shadows or darker selves.
A moving and powerful duet between two male dancers prepares us for the tragedy that will inevitably ensue and Veldman makes great use of the Cubism-inspired space as shards of glass progressively hamper the dancers' progression.
A fabulous triple bill with dancers of the highest standard which perhaps only lacked a little light relief.
Related:
Rambert will be at Theatr Clwyd until March 12. Tickets £25, £22, £18. Call 01352 701521 or visit www.clwyd-theatr-cymru.co.uk.
