SIMON PARSONS is discomfited by an unflichingly negative portrait of motherhood and its trials
Take your mum
The Cuban star Carlos Acosta uses his celebrity to showcase the choreography of others in an egalitarian spirit, judges MATTHEW HAWKINS
PAUL FOLEY recommends an extraordinary double bill that packs a punch and leaves you reeling
MARY CONWAY is disappointed by a play about AI that results in a deadening disconnect for its audience
SIMON PARSONS applauds an insightful state-of-the-nation play that explores the growing class divide in South Africa
MATTHEW HAWKINS pays tribute to the performance artist and costumier, Leigh Bowery
SIMON DUFF reviews a new composition by German composer and pianist Florian Weber that blurs the line between where improvisation ends and composition begins
New releases from The Jim Mullen Quartet, Caroline Kraabel/John Edwards, and Matthew Muneses/Riza Printup
REVEALINGLY, Carlos Acosta writes that On before is “one of the most important shows” he has created and danced.
Explicitly in this case, Carlos Acosta has used this revived version of On Before (premiered last week at Edinburgh’s Festival Theatre, prior to UK touring) to present some new-generation performers and choreographers from his Havana-based troupe Acosta Danza.
The exposure is especially viable given Acosta’s physical manifestation, and the inclusion of choreographic works by established makers and a well-planned tour of large proscenium theatres, backed by the producing forces of Norwich Theatre. It is a vital feat to be able to offer opportunities amid such established renown. The live artwork gets to assume a powerful frame.
More from this author
The phrase “cruel to be kind” comes from Hamlet, but Shakespeare’s Prince didn’t go in for kidnap, explosive punches, and cigarette deprivation. Tam is different.
ANGUS REID deconstructs a popular contemporary novel aimed at a ‘queer’ young adult readership
A landmark work of gay ethnography, an avant-garde fusion of folk and modernity, and a chance comment in a great interview
ANGUS REID applauds the inventive stagecraft with which the Lyceum serve up Stevenson’s classic, but misses the deeper themes
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WILL STONE applauds a quartet of dance vignettes exploring the joys and sorrows of the human condition
MARJORIE MAYO recommends an exhibition that asserts Palestinian history, culture and creativity in the face of strategies to erase them
TONY MILLS, artistic director of Dancebase, reveals how he assembles a festival programme in the teeth of tough economic realities
Co-curator TOM WHITE introduces a father-and-son exhibition of photography documenting the experience and political engagement of Chilean exiles