Review: SADLER'S SAMPLED, Sadler's Wells

Sadler's Sampled is Sadler's Wells' annual parade of varied dance offerings - although this year proved somewhat of a disappointment from previous iterations. The selected work felt unbalanced in favour of contemporary performances, and for this traditionalist, the lack of any classical work weighed heavy.

Sadler's Wells offers a full spectrum of dance styles, and this season will see visits from Birmingham Royal Ballet, English National Ballet's Alina Cojocaru, Northern Ballet and more, so the absence of classical here feels disappointing as the event seeks to capture the imagination of younger audiences. It's sad if programmers feel ballet doesn't check this box. But, personal preferences aside, the evening is always slick and well put together, with informative VTs warming us up to what's to come.

In a programme of established names and newcomers keen to impress, Company Wayne McGregor is the most recognisable. The finely trained dancers perform an extract from Living Archive, a work made in collaboration with Google (Arts and Culture Lab). The VT explains how an AI choreographic tool has learnt a vocabulary of all of the movements in McGregor's work and able to suggest new movement phrases or possibilities. The result, set against a digital backdrop of endless code down a page, is recognisably McGregor, danced intelligently by the company, whose own understanding of his choreography gives a feeling of high quality.

It was the bulk of time given to either disappointing or unengaging work that means the evening failed to set fire. Circus performers Machine de Cirque bookended the interval with two samples, one with juggling clubs and the other with a seesaw. These zany performers will be perfect for taking youngsters to the theatre over a half-term break, but their schtick gets repetitive quickly and the whacky facial expressions wear a little thin. It would be fine if their tricks were polished, but too many of those juggling clubs are dropped. It becomes quite a stressful watch, rather than some comedy theatrics to sit back and enjoy.

Thankfully, there was stylish relief from Camila Alegre and Ezequiel Lopez from German Cornejo's renowned troupe of tango dancers. Alegre provoked a sigh of appreciation from the off in her glittering red full-length dress with an exposed back, this was before the lower-body gymnastics ensued.

The audience are treated to three dramatically danced excerpts, which perhaps could be more distinctive from each other, but as long as Alegre's legs orbit Lopez at warp speed before stopping in a controlled flourish, everyone laps it up. These seasoned performers, familiar to Sadler's Wells, show great confidence in their flirty interactions and glances to each other too. Their tango selection certainly did the trick of whetting the appetite for the full-length show at the Peacock Theatre in May.

There are well-chosen pieces for two of last year's Young Dancer finalists, including eventual winner Max Revell who wears strings tied to his wrists and ankles for Unstrung, which explores freedom and structure. Shree Savani, a bharatanatyam dancer, exudes joy in Devi, a piece celebrating female empowerment inspired by Hindu goddesses.

Over half of the programme running time is then comprised of companies delivering different strands of contemporary including jumpstyle and hip-hop. Self-taught dancers, (La)Horde explain in their VT how their high-energy routines are danced to music of 150bpm, which seems exciting, but we get a silent excerpt that - although it demonstrates impression union - lacks impact.

Hip-hop work from Far from the Norm and Géométrie Variable both suffer through overlong extracts that lack context. However, in the case of the latter, the hypnotic quality that sees lines and angles merge into new patterns and shapes does have watchability.

Sadler's Sampled ran at Sadler's Wells on 31 January 31 and 1 February

Image: Paul Hampartsoumian

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