Dance, Issue 608

All day hip hop event

Banksy’s subversive street art sells for millions, Snoop Dogg and Dr Dre are basically musical royalty and films such as Step Up 2 continue to popularise break-dancing and battling. Hip hop and street culture couldn’t be having more of a moment. Funny…

Dance Base Presents…

One stop shop for dance fans

Pop open the Dance Base brochure and what do you see? A picture of artistic director, Morag Deyes beckoning you into one of the most striking arts-centred buildings in Edinburgh. And why go? To see what will be one of the more eclectic, stimulating and…

InvAsian Festival

Choreography from across the Continent

There’s no shortage of diverse dance at the Fringe, but seldom do you find it all under one roof. The InvAsian Festival, however, is priding itself on bringing together a wide range of performers from throughout the eponymous continent, and basing them…

Hitlist: Festival Dance

Dance Base Presents... Scotland’s National Centre for Dance welcomes you into another packed programme. Dance Base, 225 5525, 7–16 Aug (not 11), times vary, £11 (£7). Preview 6 Aug, £6. Pericles Redux Californian physical theatre company No Man…

Rise

Extreme movement meets electronica

Dry ice fills the air while hooded dancers move across a dimly lit stage. Despite the huge, wide space they occupy, there’s something oppressive and deeply atmospheric about Tom Dale’s new show, Rise. All of this is conveyed through a tiny clip on…

Bale de Rua

Brazilian rhythm of life

Being short of cash can lead to some surprisingly good results. Back in 2004, when Brazilian company, Bale de Rua found themselves without a costume budget, they improvised with paint instead. Covering their skin with bright colours, the effect was…

The Factory

Theatrical technology

A questioning of human nature and love of technology has defined Bristol-based company Precarious in recent years. Both Junction 8 and Druthers explored aspects of ourselves we’d sometimes rather forget, and presented them in a cutting-edge fashion. Now…

Obong

Celebration of Nigerian music and dance

It’s easy to lump African dance together into one big melting pot of bright costumes and tribal drums. In reality, not only does each country have a distinct style, so too does each region within it. Hailing from Cross River State in Nigeria, the Obong…

The Cholmondeleys and the Featherstonehaughs

Dance of Death

It’s hardly damning the cast of Dancing On Your Grave to call them a handful of dead-beats. Created by the veteran choreographer Lea Anderson for members of her two cult dance companies, The Cholmondeleys (pronounced ‘chum-leez’) and The…

Pericles Redux

Getting physical with the Bard

‘Putting Shakespeare to dance is a dangerous thing to tackle,’ says John Farmanesh-Bocca about his ‘wild retelling’ of Pericles. ‘People are like, “well, are you going to make it a dance or are you actually going to speak the language properly?” We’re…

Transgression

Bikers and breakers take it to the limit

Prepare for the ultimate in urban sports, as rival factions clash for control of the concrete jungle using skateboards, BMXs, breakdancing and free running instead of fists. Transgression grew out of the passion and skill of Edinburgh’s ‘urban…

Interrupt

Relationship drama on the dancefloor

The bustle of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe is not necessarily the ideal place to premiere a new piece by a new company. But David Beer, of still wet-behind-the-ears classical/contemporary dance company, Collisions, is letting the experience shape his…

5 Questions: 2FaCeD

What five words describe how a 2FaCeD DaNcE show makes you feel? High, energised, happy, wow, sexy. What four things have brought you back to the Fringe? The atmosphere, different venues, further opportunities, the challenge. Name three major…

Capoeira Knights

This lively lot are the real deal – 16 athletic performers straight from the streets, or favelas, of Brazil. Capoeira is termed ‘a fight disguised as a dance’ in their native land, and helps to channel energies into more creative endeavours. Featuring…