Stone Nest, London
May 9, 2024
Rambert was ‘up close and personal’ for Analogue and you don’t get much more intimate than at Stone Nest, a gem of a space snuggled amidst the glitter of London’s West End. It was a short programme, just one 50-minute number, but pure gold in terms of amazing dance in a no-frills package.
Moving the audience close up is a developing trend in dance. Lanterns Studio Theatre in E14 and Robert Binet’s Dark with Excessive Bright that adapted the Linbury to a promenade type space have experimented with it, but Analogue took this to another level. The dancers, moving with high energy and at speed, were so close you felt the rush of air on your face. It was truly exhilarating.
Photo Camilla Greenwell
Stone Nest, a former Welsh Chapel, is exquisitely restored, the centre square under the dome, cleared as a dance space. In the manner of ‘relaxed theatre’ the dancers continue warming up as the audience enters, and reserved seats were taken by the dancers between entrances, an unusual move that added to the casual atmosphere.
However, the dance was full on. The work opens as dancers pace the stage purposefully, fast walking in preordained patterns, never colliding and totally aware.
This sets the tone of the evening: a group of intensely individual dancers who manage simultaneously to be part of a corporate body pursuing the single aim of making beautiful dance. This primary purpose has subtexts and like a super intelligent debate the conversation flows, sharp and engaging through the dancers’ lithe bodies.
Jill Johnson’s choreography, effortlessly structured, is characterised by a mix of outrageously flexible limbs and muscular athleticism. The meetings, the partnering and the individual solos seem just to happen. The group awareness is electric, the dancers living in the moment and responding in an instant. The dance, while non-narrative, never lost meaning and I could happily have watched it all over again.
Music by David Poe is an added treat. It does not only accompany but brings a strong emotional backing. At times the rhythms are picked up by the dancers in clapping and thigh slapping raising the pleasure levels.
Richard Gellar’s on-nonsense costumes consisted of black trousers and white tops with soft sneaker type shoes. These hug the feet, the broad-based rubber soles offering an exceptional range of ankle movement enabling versatile, often twisted feet, to add spice to the mix. The lighting by Richard Williamson is effective, predominantly a large panel over the dance floor given the final nod by Aishwarya Raut when it’s time for lights out.
There seemed to be individual moments for each of the Rambert dancers with Raut and Naya Lovell as constant stand-outs. The company are top of their game and much as the show works brilliantly in this intimate space, I hope it can also be seen by a larger public.