At Sadlers Wells in London until 2 March, then touring
Deepstaria is a genus of deep-sea jellyfish, rarely seen, mysterious and delicate yet predatory. It is usually found between 600 metres and 1750 metres beneath the waves. It is also the favourite jellyfish of choreographer Wayne McGregor, who has constructed a new show inspired by marine life.
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The backdrop of the set at Sadler鈥檚 Wells in London is made of Vantablack, a pigment consisting of carbon nanotubes that absorbs more than 99.96 per cent of light. You are staring into the void. The dancers float into this zone of emptiness. It is often said that professional dancers (and indeed basketball players) seem to be able to cheat gravity, and that is the case here. But what I found extraordinary was the way they were able to cheat biology. In their swirling movements and interactions, the degree to which they adopted the forms of marine invertebrates was astounding. If that sounds a bit too 鈥渕odern dance鈥�, don鈥檛 be put off.
The soundtrack, by , uses Bronze AI, which weaves together recordings of the marine ecosystem and the score to create an ever-changing, almost-live music experience. McGregor calls the music 鈥渁 live, sonic animal鈥�. The light, piercing the darkness, picks out the dancers. At one point, there is a rain shower, and all the while the ripple and swirl of ocean currents. I found myself absorbed into the plankton of the abyss, and left the performance mindful of the commonalities all lifeforms share.
