I’m sitting in the Battersea Arts Centre in a dark room; through headphones Marco Polo quietly whispers his description of a fantastical city. Fans blow the soft scent of jasmine across the room. ‘Relax into your seat,’ a voice tells me. ‘You are the Kublai Khan.’ We sit for awhile, me and Polo, in my […]

The anticipation was palpable in London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall: the Tiger Lillies were returning to the stage, this time providing the music to a version ofHamlet produced by the Copenhagen-based Republique Theatre Company. Being a long-time fan of their music, my hopes were high for this production, and to anyone who is used to watching standard […]

I think it’s useful to start by saying that The Raun Tree is a music performance.  Now, I’m not a fan of categorising performance into genres – you risk reducing your audience and limiting expectations. Blurring the borders between genres and mixing disciplines so often has especially vivid results – sparking new associations by creating richly layered […]

A classic circus of (seeming) incompetence, a trampolining suicide bomber, and an abstract promenade dance for waterfronts – Edward Taylor at this year’s Mintfest Billed as their latest performance, Circus Ronaldo’s Amortale, presented at this year’s Kendal Mintfest in the company’s own tent, was not so much new as a re-working of their classic Fili show with a […]

‘Myths are the stories we used to explain ourselves’ – so begins Kate Tempest’s accomplished production of Brand New Ancients. This virtuosic performance uses spoken word and live music to celebrate ‘everyday epics’ and the gods that walk amongst us. From the offset one cannot help but warm to Kate’s genuine charm as she greets the […]