Cloud Gate Dance Theatre's enchanting work captures the serene beauty and spiritual sanctuary of the evergreen bamboo forests. 
 
Artistic Director Lin Hwai-min’s choreography masterfully blends ancient wisdom and modern artistry to create an immersive world, inspired in part by The Seven Sages in The Bamboo Grove, a group of third-century Chinese scholars, musicians, and writers, who retreated to the bamboo groves to escape persecution and to continue their political and artistic endeavors.  

Set to music by Estonian composer Arvo Pärt and improvised melodies from Chinese flute player Huang Sheng-kai, the dancers create six expressive scenes that follow the ever-changing seasons: Morning Mist, Spring Breeze, Summer Heat, Autumn Path, When Rain Stops, At Midnight and Snow. With skillful meditative motion inspired by martial arts, contemporary dance, and ballet, dancers flow through tall stalks of bamboo. This work is a moving testament to the skill and caliber of Cloudgate Dance Theatre.  

Cloud Gate Dance Theatre's enchanting work captures the serene beauty and spiritual sanctuary of the evergreen bamboo forests. 

Bamboo Dream

Cloud Gate Dance Theatre's breathtaking tribute to the serene and meditative beauty of water. 

Inspired by the Buddhist proverb ''Flowers in a mirror and the moon on water are both illusive,'' choreographer Lin Hwai-min has created a poetic exploration of the ever-changing and cyclical nature of life. Set to the backdrop of Bach's Six Cello Suites, played by Mischa Maisky, dancers move in front of a mirror on a reflective stage playing with the elusive nature of reflection. Through years of Tai Chi training with master Shong Wei, the Cloud Gate dancers exude control and balance in their movements giving the impression of sculptural stillness that is nothing short of mesmirizing.  

Cloud Gate Dance Theatre's breathtaking tribute to the serene and meditative beauty of water. 

Moon Water

The history of contemporary dance is a story of rule-breaking rebels, bold moves, and fearless creativity. But how did it all begin? 

Cynthia Dragoni from ''The Dance Lens,'' takes us through a brief and fascinating history of contemporary dance. From its rebellious roots at the turn of the century to its present-day popularity, learn how trailblazers like Isadora Duncan and Merce Cunningham broke conventions and set the stage for daring choreographers to take the art form to the next level. See how choreographers like Crystal Pite and Akram Khan fuse dance styles to create mind-bending new creations, and discover the secret to the genre's popularity and longevity - embracing innovation. This is a short history of Contemporary Dance. 

Cynthia Dragoni from ''The Dance Lens,'' takes us through a brief and fascinating history of contemporary dance, from its rebellious roots at the turn of the century to its present-day popularity.

A Short History of Contemporary Dance

Presented by Fall For Dance North, Choreographer Aszure Barton captures the colourful spirit of Havana with Cuba’s Malpaso Dance Company.

Directed by Vikram Dasgupta and filmed on-site in the breezy courtyard of a classic Baroque building in Havana, Cuba, dancers fill the space with captivating kinetic energy. Like the bustling streets of the city, friends and loved ones flow through space to the rhythm of jazz.  

Presented by Fall For Dance North, Choreographer Aszure Barton captures the colourful spirit of Havana with Cuba’s Malpaso Dance Company.

Bloom

Three incredible performances in a range of styles from ballet to hip-hop to tap. Together for the first time, Tiler Peck, Lil Buck, Sierra Boggess, Brooklyn Mack, and the Syncopated Ladies take the stage in works by Chloe Arnold and Jennifer Weber, and a world premiere from Christopher Wheeldon.

Three incredible performances in a range of styles from ballet to hip-hop to tap.

A New Stage: Curated by Tiler Peck

This captivating short dance film unveils the story of a lonely ice fisherman who finds an unlikely friend trapped within the depths of the frozen sea ice.  

Against the backdrop of a desolate Arctic shore, a lonely fisherman's fate intertwines with that of a frozen prehistoric man encased in ice. As twilight descends, the ice-bound figure defrosts, revealing an unexpected friend and dance partner. Yet, as the dawn's unforgiving light breaks, revelations shatter the facade of their newfound connection. Combining the art of silent narrative, deadpan Nordic humor, and an original soundtrack by avant-garde accordion wizard Kimmo Pohjonen, this acclaimed short film has taken the festival circuit by storm. Its enigmatic storytelling and mesmerizing choreography have earned it both critical praise and an enthusiastic following.

This captivating short dance film unveils the story of a lonely ice fisherman who finds an unlikely friend trapped within the depths of the frozen sea ice.

Cold Storage

Bold, unpredictable, and innovative. Multi-award-winning choreographer Alexander Ekman's Hammer is a humorous critique of our image-obsessed world. 

A harmonious commune of altruistic individuals begins to dissolve as they adopt a more modern life. With all eyes on them, the community becomes gradually more individualistic and egotistical. Ekman shines a light on the skewed values of contemporary society with talented dancers of the GöteborgsOperans Danskompani. Hammer is a bold testament to Ekman's creative powers.  

Bold, unpredictable, and innovative. Multi-award-winning choreographer Alexander Ekman's Hammer is a humorous critique of our image-obsessed world. 

Alexander Ekman: Hammer

Sensual and entrancing, Kylián's Wings of Wax is an allegorical journey danced beneath the branches of an inverted tree to a hauntingly beautiful score of selections by musical giants Philip Glass, Heinrich von Biber, John Cage, and Johann Sebastian Bach.

Kylián's Wings of Wax is an allegorical journey danced beneath the branches of an inverted tree to a hauntingly beautiful score.

Wings of Wax

A captivating story told through BSL, voice and movement, Unspoken Spoken is performed by a cast of disabled and non-disabled dancers. Created and filmed with support from digital commissioning body The Space, Arts Council England and the BBC, the film seeks to raise awareness of Candoco’s work amongst a digital audience for the first time.

A captivating story told through BSL, voice and movement, Unspoken Spoken is performed by a cast of disabled and non-disabled dancers.

Unspoken Spoken (Audio Described)

With BiT, Maguy Marin signs her forty-ninth opus in barely forty years. At the center of this brutal charge against ordinary barbarism lies the question of rhythm.

The title refers to the computer term for the unit of measurement of information, this word-syllable gives an initial rhythmic drive, after which the show takes shape, relentless succession of scansions and impulses, twists and tensions orchestrated with the feverish rigor of a dance both joyful and desperate. As a constant in the piece, in an obsessive continuity, the same structure: the farandole, a form of collective dance passed down through the ages, is the recurring motif. All the colors of the human condition slide in, love rites and dances of death. On an exhilarating techno music all in beats, the entire show has no shortage of cruelty on the analysis of contemporary society, in the dark conclusion of the dominations exerted on the intimate as well as the social, a deterioration of which we ourselves are the actors. BiT takes us into the depths of our humanity and questions our individual responsibilities in the turmoil of each passing day.

BiT takes us into the depths of our humanity and questions our individual responsibilities in the turmoil of each passing day.

Set to contrasting scores by Charlotte Harding and Keaton Henson, Them/Us is an inventive double bill asking where we see ourselves in relation to the “other,” and explores the fine balance between them and us. Them is created through a unique choreographic process by the dancers. The piece explores the versatility of movement which the company has always been known for and proves to be an exciting culmination of the experience gained after 20 years of working with leading artists. Tony and Olivier Award-winning choreographer Christopher Wheeldon concludes the evening with Us, exploring human connections and culminating in a tender duet.

Them/Us is an inventive double bill asking where we see ourselves in relation to the “other,” and explores the fine balance between them and us.

Them/Us

A passionate and energetic picture of lonely people in a large city, Robert North's jazz ballet takes its title from the popular music by Bill Withers to which it is set. Andrew Storer's designs, with fire escapes and overspilling dustbins, suggest a seedy district of an American Town. Rambert Dance Company give an electrifying performance in this studio recording.

A passionate and energetic picture of lonely people in a large city.

Lonely Town, Lonely Street

Betroffenheit is a word which means trauma, bewilderment and shock. A fitting title for this boundary-stretching hybrid of theater and dance, created by Crystal Pite and Jonathon Young. 

The powerful performance is inspired by Young’s real-life trauma, conjuring art from the pain of losing his daughter, niece and nephew in a fire.  

Combining tap, salsa, spoken word, song and puppetry, Betroffenheit is a witty, tender exploration of isolation and coming to terms with tragedy. It was the recipient of the 2017 Olivier Award for Best New Dance Production and the Outstanding Performance in Modern Dance at the Critics’ Circle National Dance Awards. 

Watch this thrilling performance recorded during its sold out run at London’s Sadler’s Wells Theatre.

Crystal Pite and Jonathon Young's Olivier winning BETROFFENHEIT is a bold hybrid of theater and dance that explores trauma, grief and addiction.

Betroffenheit

Soledad is a duo full of sensuality and emotion that explores the wild and tender aspects of a love relationship. Bonachela received the Guglielmo Ebreo Award and the Critics Award at the first international Biennale Danza Italia competition for independent choreographers, in Italy, 2006.

Soledad is a duo full of sensuality and emotion that explores the wild and tender aspects of a love relationship.

Soledad

Adapted from the anti-play Offending the Audience by Austrian playwright Peter Handke and enriched by Ohad Naharin’s innovative, movement language Gaga, the Bessie-award winning Naharin’s Virus exemplifies the choreographer’s aesthetic with the sole purpose of showing the naked reality of a moment in space. The varied soundtrack includes classical music, original music by Karni Postel, and adaptations of traditional Arabic music by Habib Alla Jamal and Shama Khader.

Adapted by Ohad Naharin from the anti-play Offending the Audience by the Nobel-winning Austrian playwright Peter Handke.

Naharin's Virus

After the success of their collaboration in Boxe Boxe (2010), choreographer Mourad Merzouki and the Debussy string quartet once again explore the mixing of genres. This piece transforms boxing into a poetic dance, accompanied by music that channels Brazilian energy through classical string instruments. Although they are improbable, Merzouki and Compagnie Käfig’s crossbreeding of genres and styles consistently prove visionary and exciting. Boxe Boxe Brasil is no exception.

Choreographer Mourad Merzouki and the Debussy string quartet once again explore the mixing of genres

Boxe Boxe Brasil

Unspoken Spoken

Recommendations

Cloud Gate Dance Theatre's visually stunning work is a meditative journey that seamlessly blends dance, nature, and ancient wisdom.

Choreographed by the esteemed Lin Hwai-min, dancers evoke spiritual pilgrimages inspired by Herman Hesse's account of Siddhartha's quest and the introspective religious practices found throughout Asia. A lone monk stands in complete stillness as three tons of golden rice grains flow onto his head and to the stage, creating a shifting landscape of hills, deserts, and rivers that usher the dancers along their journey.  Enchanting Georgian folksongs reverberate through the space while dancers sift through the sandy rice creating a powerful narrative of self-discovery and the pursuit of enlightenment.  

Cloud Gate Dance Theatre's visually stunning work is a meditative journey that seamlessly blends dance, nature, and ancient wisdom.


Songs of the Wanderers

Cloud Gate Dance Theatre

Subscribe now to watch

Cast & Crew

Recommendations