NEDERLANDS DANS THEATER 2, Touring

Birmingham and Touring
Nederlands Dans Theater 2 (NDT2)
Birmingham Hippodrome
May 4 and 5, Part of Birmingham International Dance Festival, also touring
Runs: 2h 10m, two intervals
Tickets (Hippodrome): 0844 338 5000
Info: www.birminghamhippodrome.com

NDT2 tour information:
http://www.ndt.nl/en/tickets/performances.html

Review: Alexander Ray Edser, 4 May 2016

Marvellous company, marvellous dance, marvellous evening.

NDT2 is a thrilling dance company; if you get chance to catch them, grab it – you will not be disappointed.

In this programme (the Birmingham Hippodrome's contribution to Birmingham's International Dance Festival) the company offers five pieces. However, their sense of style and the magic of this talented group of dancers each of whom combines power with grace, give the programme a satisfying feeling of unity.

The work is modern but never off-puttingly obscure; tastes are eclectic, in the programme the music of Van Morrison rubs shoulders with Bach, Haydn, minimalist Miko Lazar.

Watching the first part of the opening work, I NEW THEN, you wonder why this is first – How can they raise the temperature from such a strong start? But they do . . . piece by piece. The company constantly works with contrasts; tiny, jerky movements combine to create flow, fast group movements work alongside stillness, noise contrasts with silence. Wit brings additional delight. In their premiere, CACTI, language is cleverly used to deconstruct the work (with us the target of the humour) but far from distancing us, we are drawn into the dancers' souls.

A word, too, for the three male dancers who join to present a single young man finding his way in the world, SOLO. Full of joy and energy, they also bring an element of vulnerability. Truly bravura performances.

And best of all is the strong sense of ensemble.

I New Then
Choreographer: Johan Inger
Music: Van Morrison

mutual comfort
Choreographer: Edward Clug
Music: Miko Lazar

Solo
Choreographer: Hans van Manen
Music: JS Bach

Cacti
Choreographer: Alexander Ekman
Music: Schubert, Haydn, Beethoven

2016-05-05 11:37:09