Festival DANCE

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HITLIST THE BEST DANCE EVENTS

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Circa: Wunderkammer Back at the Fringe, following on from their 2009

debut show Circa, the latest offering from the unconventional Australian circus troupe looks better than ever. Underbelly, 0844 545 8252, until 26 Aug (not 7, 13, 20), 5pm, £16.50– £18.50 (£15.50–£17.50).

Smashed Gandini Juggling go from calm poise to fruit-smashing chaos in this lively tribute to Pina Bausch. See review, left. Assembly Hall, 623 3030, until 26 Aug (not 13), 6.05pm, £12–£14 (£11–£13).

Cambuyón Percussive music,

dance and humour combine in this entertaining, upbeat, yet intricate show from Spain. See review, page 59.

Assembly Roxy, 623 3030, until 26 Aug (not 13), 6pm, £15–£17.

XD Prepare for the unexpected, the funny and the downright bonkers, in

this engaging work from experiental Italian company, CollettivO CineticO. See review, page 59. Dance Base, 225 5525, until 17 Aug (not 12), times vary, £8.

Squish Hip hop/contemporary dancer Tony Mills explores our work/life balance in this thought-provoking new show. Dance Base, 225 5525, until 17 Aug (not 12), times vary, £8.

S/He is Nancy Joe A powerful look at the

torment and social isolation of being born with a sexual identity that doesn’t fit who you really are. Zoo Southside, 662 6892, until 18 Aug (not 12 & 13), 1.30pm, £9–£11 (£9).

SMASHED Avant-garde juggling upsets the apple cart

T he opening minutes of Smashed seem, at first, to set the tone for what’s about to follow: a very polished, über-sophisticated display of debonair juggling in a string of complicated, gracefully choreographed configurations.

The Gandini Juggling ensemble dress in smart suits and cocktail dresses and specialise in what it calls ‘virtuoso juggling’. Even with eyes closed, during a flawlessly synchronised Mexican wave, or with several performers interlocking tango dance legs and arms while they throw and catch, no one ever drops the ball or the apple in their case. Little vignettes flirty men trying to distract a coy girl from her apple juggling for example, display the London company’s jaw-dropping skills, in what, on the surface, is a polite, neatly groomed production. It’s only when the two females start crawling on all fours before the men, with apples in their mouths, to the tune of ‘Stand By Your Man’,

58 THE LIST FESTIVAL 8–15 Aug 2013

that the show’s demure façade begins to slip, and things get more interesting. Inspired by the work of German-born dancer/choreographer Pina Bausch, Smashed pushes juggling past the boundaries of straightforward circus show-offery into something altogether darker and funnier. Humiliation, romance, gender politics, relationship dynamics and, er, tea drinking are all explored with an unexpected, and impish sense of humour, and the show’s satisfying unravelling into puréed apple and broken crockery chaos is as impressive as the juggling itself.

A forced-eccentric interlude of dialogue about tea in the middle seems unnecessary; it’s the wordless apple chucking, fancy moves and subtle facial storytelling that really does the talking. (Claire Sawers)

Smashed, Assembly Hall, 623 3030, until 26 Aug (not 13), 6.05pm, £12–£14 (£11–£13). ●●●●●