The Place is renowned for hosting a variety of choreographers, themes and skills, and the Season of New Choreography created by Rambert's dancers was no exception. Featuring five works in total, many of the pieces shown were constructed in live collaboration between the dancers and musicians, representing a range of innovative approaches through Rambert’s Music Fellowship scheme. The Season of new choreography saw the dancers experiment and create brand new work under mentors Darshan Singh Buller, Sarah Rubidge and Eddie Nixon, supported by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation.

The evening took a purposeful and distinct course from the outset.  The first piece, choreographed by Jonathan Goddard embodied the mobile technology that dictates our lives, proceeding to dictate the movement journeys of the dancers involved. Entitled 07941611971, Goddard claimed invention with no pre-existing choreographic content, using audience participation and Twister-esque spinners to develop both creative and extremely technical movement. The dancers’ phone numbers scrolled across LED boards above the space, with audience members invited to call a dancer and direct their movement. A question of ethics crossed my mind whilst watching: who would want to delete these fantastic dancers’ phone numbers?! Goddard’s work echoed Merce Cunningham’s methodologies in theory, and I imagine Cunningham would have relished in such an innovative use of choreographic intent, relying so much on the imagination and strong skill of the dancers involved.

Following such a revelation was Kirill Burlov’s Mamihlapinatapai – the confusion of the title alone had nothing on the piece itself. Whilst the dancers displayed the virtuosic flexibility and strength, I was left wondering what meaning I should take from this complex work. The programme notes were limited, attempting to translate the word which shed no light on the movement content, unfortunately. Despite this, the on-stage musical ensemble provided a touchstone for the piece, reminding me of the grounded reality of the pure creation of art in the space. The house lights remained up as the dancers entered the space, stretching and talking. This provided an extreme contrast with the conclusive performance, with the scenario demystifying the illusion that is often created by such skill and performance in real bodies, often forgotten by the audience. On a rather pedantic note, the curtain call left much to be desired, quashing the technical display.

The interval gave way to a humorous and particularly truthful creation: Lines written a few miles below by Malgorzata Dzierzon, the result of a period of collaboration in exploring the unique culture of London commuters. Particularly well portrayed was the silent confrontation in navigating around a busy London, something in which possibly all audience members could relate to. The piece made direct reference to public human behaviour, depicting this both precisely and insightfully, with each dancer becoming a character that could also be recognised throughout the audience, with separate lives joining on one journey. The ensemble work directly portrayed the adverse reality of commuters, developing the mindset of that person who wakes up with their head in their neighbour’s lap, the enthusiastic and passionate couple, and the disgruntled city worker, all conveying the inadvertent annoyance at fellow passengers. A job well done.

The fourth piece of the evening was choreographed by Otis-Cameron Carr, entitled Oh! The virtuosic skill presented here was like no other, with calm and fluid transitions between the solos, duets and ensemble work between the four dancers. Carr created with reference to the environment of his home life, and the temperaments of the female bodies combined with Carr’s own within the household. The classical quality of the movement was particularly welcome in his conveyance of an almost haunting quality through the dancers’ performances. With Carr responsible for choreography, costume design and sound design, the poignant feelings evoked reverberated through the core of the piece, reflected inwards and back out. Technical skill is often a given for Rambert dancers, yet those chosen by Carr were a credit to his work, displaying such control and strength especially during the adage type movement phrases created.

The evening was concluded, and quite rightfully so, with the choreographic collaboration between Jonathan Goddard and Gemma Nixon. Taking their interpretation of a Grimm’s fairy tale, they explored the trapping visions of the sub-conscious through a dark journey shared between the characters involved, danced by Goddard and Nixon. Aside from such innovative and creative choreographic display, the particular lighting and music selected added an intensely sinister feel to the movement, which eventually became frantic and disturbing, questioning what makes us feel trapped. The manipulative duet led by Goddard created fear in the intimacy shared with Nixon, investigating both character and choreographic intent and leading the audience to share Nixon’s panic in being controlled so helplessly. Strobe lighting was featured in the use of showering feathers in the final phrases, which inevitably added to the dark fear connected with a lack of understanding.

Overall, the Rambert dancers portrayed excellent skill and performance, maintaining their reputation as both innovative creators and solid, strong dancers.