Twice-Born, Scottish Ballet
First Artist Rishan Benjamin in Dickson Mbi's Twice-Born. © Andy Ross
Scottish Ballet made a rare London appearance last night at Sadler’s Wells. The company normally tour Scotland and the north of England, so this double bill of work was a lovely treat for us southern dance nerds.
Well, I say double bill: we were in fact treated to a cheeky third.
The night opened with a dance film by Sophie Laplane called Dive. In what felt at times like a toothpaste commercial, dancers switched between lyrical beauty and more grounded commercial confined to a white (sometimes blue) box which was home to a llama (your guess is as good as mine). As the lead dancer belly flopped into a swimming pool, bringing the film to a sudden close, I was no closer to making head or tale of what I’d just seen. However, I am even more excited to see Laplane’s first full-length ballet in the summer, Mary Queen of Scots, due to the evident breadth of her choreographic dictionary.
This uncertainty as to a work’s point was an unfortunate running theme throughout the evening.
Scottish Ballet dancers in Cayetano Soto's Schachmatt as part of Twice-Born double bill. © Andy Ross
Schachmatt by Spanish choreographer Cayetano Soto translates to checkmate in German, but apart from a checkerboard floor, little linked this work to the revered strategy game. Dancers dressed as jockeys pranced across the stage, their legs cocking up to the side at angles, arms moving in soldier-like unison. It was comic and cheeky, with a unique choreographic style heavily infused by jazz. The score only elevated this, with an eclectic mix of European vintage tunes to get your toes tapping along. I was absolutely loving it, it was joy, a revelation in my dance journey. Unfortunately, as with many works it seems, it hit a point where the joke got a little tired, and a lack of destination meant its ending felt uncertain. A real shame.
I’m going to preface my third review by saying the audience loved Twice-Born by Dickson Mbe. The crowd went wild as this epic tribal tale came to its triumphant end, those around me standing on their feet. I, meanwhile, looked around in confusion. Because I could not tell you the first thing about what I’d just witnessed.
At the centre of the work was a huge rock (goodness knows how they got it down from Glasgow). A woman hugged its overwhelming form, as dancers entered the stage, thrumming along to the humming rhythms of Mbi’s self-composed score. Soon she was hunting through the crowd, looking for someone (who? why?), before collapsing as rocks fell to the ground behind her.
First Artists Anna Williams and Rishan Benjamin (Standing) in Dickson Mbi's Twice-Born. © Andy Ross
A tonal shift suggested the second act would bring context. Alas, it seemed completely unrelated. A new woman was sacrificed by a woman performing some sort of tribal ritual, her followers hauling rocks around the stage. But, unlike our first dancer, this one was revived. A circus wire lifted her above the stage, Christ-like, before she floated around (a little timidly, as if still finding faith in the equipment) and performed a lyrical solo assisted by this additional weightlessness.
The only thing I remember from my Classics A-Level is the phrase ‘in medias res’. It means in the middle of things and is a literary technique to throw a reader right in the centre of the action from page one. It can be incredibly effective, but in a dance work like this it simply didn’t work. Throwing us straight in with little world building and character background or motivation made for frustrating watching and I struggled to emotionally invest or relate — the epic events were happening at a clinical distance, not mere meters away. The work had so much potential for dramatic scope. Alas, the story needs to go deeper.
★★★
Dive by Sophie Laplane
Schachmatt by Cayetano Soto
Twice-Born by Dickson Mbe
Performed by Scottish Ballet at Sadler’s Wells, London / 6 March 2025
Press ticket
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