S(c)ent/Turret/In C Sharp Minor/.com together

Published Wednesday 7 May 2008 at 13:35 by Kevin Berry

Hardly three years old the New English Contemporary Ballet company is already in a strong position. That it has a clear artistic vision and the awareness to evolve is readily apparent.

Also evident in this pleasantly varied touring programme is the ability and technique of the dancers. Marina Sanchez Garrigos and Jean-Michel Sinisterra Munoz stand out in an exciting group.

The programme opens with Richard Wherlock’s S(c)ent, which was enthusiastically received on the company’s autumn tour last year. It has the dancers playing with ideas of lingering attraction and enjoying moments of studied stillness.

From then on, each piece is a world premiere. Four dancers, clad in red and black, are on stage for Vanessa Fenton’s attention- grabbing Turret - dramatic images of folk tale towers and entrapment and the effort to break free.

NECB’s own Jamie Thomson has choreographed .com together. He contrasts sterile internet chatting with the warmth of face to face meetings. Movements are very up to the minute and Sinisterra Munoz figures strongly as the dancers show classy interpretations of street styles.

C Sharp Minor provides a memorable climax. Intrigued by Beethoven’s String Quartets, in this case the Opus 131 arranged for string orchestra, Davide Bombana has the dancers reaching for the heart of the music and becoming part of it. There is aching emotion in their expression and again and again there is the thrill of watching these dancers move as a swaying, rippling unit.

This company has a touching freshness about its work, and its dancers excel.