The life of Caravaggio is rich indeed for any potential work about him. Not only was he one of the most celebrated painters of his day, pioneering a new artistic style, but his private life was full of violence, brawls, scandals, a flirtation with the Knights of Malta, exile, murder - as well as the recent findings that his own paints may well have led to his madness, violence and eventural death from lead poisoning (among other possible causes).

From the opening sequence of Lee Clayden writhing on the floor in Caravaggio's death throes, soon followed by an outstanding solo by Nicholas Keegan, it looked as though this was going to be one of the best contemporary dance shows I've seen for a long time. Unfortunately, despite Darshan Singh Bhuller's inventive and often powerful choreography, it never really lived up to its initial promise.

Surprisingly, Caravaggio did not have a prominent role in this piece about him; the ensemble instead portrayed much of the storyline, including Caravaggio's torment and confusion, and possibly his hallucinations too. Through them, we saw the part of Caravaggio's life which was filled by society balls, models and shadowy monks. According to the leaflet handed out to the audience, the storyline was of a fictionalised love triangle formed with a destitute couple who Caravaggio took under his wing. Although we did see the love triangle carried out, its significance was lost among the many ensemble dances.

Darshan Singh Bhuller had announced that he wouldn't be choreographing the act of painting in his work, which meant that various of Caravaggio's works were depicted throughout the piece; the opening scene was of a basket of fruit sitting on a chair, as in 'Basket of Fruit' (1599); we later saw Nicholas Keegan being prepared for posing for 'Bacchus' (1595), and the death of Lisa Welham was transformed into the setting for 'Death of the Virgin' (1606). At the end of the piece, one of Caravaggio's last works, 'David with the Head of Goliath' (1610) was projected onto the rear of the stage. While the choreography implied something of significant was happening at each staging, the effect was probably somewhat baffling for those who were unfamiliar with Caravaggio's work.

Caravaggio's story is so dramatic, it was disappointing that this work barely scraped the surface of the potential material, omitting much of the turbulence which filled his life. While there was much to seduce the audience - the vivid imagery, including nuns and monks wearing red high heels, the use of projection, some breathtakingly beautiful choreography, and the long-overdue return of Lee Clayden - sadly this piece turned out to be less than what it aspired to be.