PonyDance and Cacus: Knee Deep in Waitin'

Casus are an interesting proposition: the seriousness of their performance pulls them away from the acrobatic rut of cheeky tricks, but their Knee Deep never quite develops the narrative or choreographic potential of their artistic take on circus.

There seems to be something going on between the four performers (three male, one female), their impressive displays of balance and aerial, their soundtrack and props- but Knee Deep does not transcend an episodic series of spectacular turns. As a straight, impressive display of skills even the hula hoop routines, let alone the dangling from the ceiling, Knee Deep is shit hot and their demeanour hints at a willingness to choreography the routines into a coherent whole. 

Eggs are incorporated into balancing acts- not so much for symbolism but to add an element of drama to the displays of skill - and the performers' intense concentration is reflected in the music - it's like random play night on the Vile hard-drive, as Reich and the Aphex Twin float in and out. While Knee Deep is certainly breath-taking and skilful, Casus are promising so much more, threatening to take their movement vocabulary and apply it to the same ends as dance or physical theatre.

Spiegeltent, Assembly Gardens, 2 -27 August

"The idea for the show came from same place as most our ideas," says Leoni from Ponydance. "People watching and whatever is going on in our own lives." So, at the moment, Leonie and her three conspirators in  Anybody Waitin'? are possibly on the hunt for a man, and spend those long periods spent hanging around in bars honing their sharp banter and funky dance routines. 

The key features of the Ponydance style are back, after their success in 2010: site specific (Silk's Nightclub, down that dodgy street at the back of the Castle), cheeky audience interaction, sudden bursts of precision dance that send up, affectionately, the choreography of pop videos from Britney to hip-hop, the recognisable characters and on-stage costume changes. 

Where Casus take an art form associated with entertainment and get serious, Ponydance start from Dance Theatre - that fascinating hybrid of word and choreography, but mostly used to be very serious indeed - and slap it with broad humour and exaggerated sexiness. When they draw attention to their costumes, they are mocking the preoccupation with glamour and the trend for breasts to beat personality in the race for love, yet this satire never overwhelms the sheer fun of their recreation of the ultimate night out (it ends in love...).

"I would say our new show is more fun than the last one," Leoni says. "When we made it we aimed for more audience interaction and more laughs and I think we nailed it." Yep, they did. 

Silk Nightclub, 3 -16 August