“Something Old, Something New...” DAVID HUGHES DANCE SCOTLAND

I'm always excited when David Hughes Dance announces a new tour: they have consistently pushed the boundaries of Scottish dance over the last few years, and tend to have a few treats held in reserve (I know that they've got Christopher Bruce's Hurricane in the repertoire, a solo that combines my father's favourite singer-songwriter, Bob Dylan, and my sister's favourite contemporary choreographer). 

When a company usually announce a mixed bill with iconic choreographers, it tends to be one piece by a well known name and three to make up the numbers. In truth, I have only read about the four choices from DHD, but all four do have my attention. 

Press release begins:

Spitfire (an advertisement divertissement) was Bourne’s first hit and something of a signature piece. It places Perrot’s famous pas de quatre, made as a kind of diva-off for the four leading ballerinas of the 19th Century, in the world of men’s underwear advertising and mail order catalogue photography.

It is both a celebration of male vanity and an affectionate comment on the preening grandeur of the danseur noble. Having developed the original role of the swan in Bourne’s Swan Lake, Hughes is delighted to have secured this work from one of the dance world’s biggest names. - Matthew Bourne’s Spitfire is presented under license by New Adventures.

So, there are four dancers, all male, and Bourne uses the stilted poses of catalogue models as a movement vocabulary. It's funny, and the men are all in their skidders. They don't so much dance together as fight for the attention of the audience. 

Adagietto, a traditional and dramatic Graham-based solo from the legendary Bob Cohan was originally performed by Hughes in his solo tour ‘MAP’ in the late 90s. It tells the story of the betrayal of Saint Sebastian, set against the dramatic Gustav Mahler Symphony Number 5 Adagietto for strings.

Following a period of working together in Lloyd Newson’s DV8, Hughes first commissioned Tanja Liedtke back in 2007. Having earned her stripes with Australian Dance Theatre, Liedtke was a rising star in dance and secured the position of Artistic Director of Sydney Dance Company. However, she tragically lost her life three months after her time in Scotland. Her work Imploded - Une Reverie Romantique is a quirky, athletic and tongue-in-cheek tribute to the first ever non-narrative ballet – Les Sylphides. With dancers assuming the cheeky and mischievous attributes of sylphs, there are more than a few references to this infamous ballet…although ballet, this certainly is not.


Finally, seminal choreographer Cathy Marston (BERN:Ballett) will present a new commission inspired by 'that Scottish play' - Shakespeare's Macbeth. Refraining from approaching the entire plot, Marston will take inspiration from the ‘sleepwalking scene’. Shakespeare's themes of ambition/power, guilt and the irreversible momentum of violence will also be explored through high-energy dance and arresting imagery.





The theme of “Something Old, Something New...” now sees the company cast a reflective look back to its roots in pure dance and re-engages with some of the key mentors and collaborators of David M Hughes the performer. The tour is a celebration of calibre and is a triumphant return to the world in which Hughes established himself as one of the best dancers of his generation.

In the tradition of his early solo tours ‘Map’ and ‘Maps’, this tour engages with revered dance makers with which Hughes has a personal connection. These people helped shape his career and, through these relationships, the early foundations of David Hughes Dance were born. Hughes embodies an era and a level of performance skill that few have achieved. By reflecting on the birth of the company this way, David Hughes Dance celebrates its inheritance while looking to the future with ‘Something Old, Something New’

‘…On its very first appearance in Pfalzbau, David Hughes Dance Company from Edinburgh gave a powerful, eclectic and enthralling performance...” - Die Rheinpfalz


‘…the stage overflowed with diversity…Hughes has struck gold!’ – The Scotsman on The Red Room


‘Well-crafted, resonates with wit & intelligence and the kind of cross-genre integration that so much dance-theatre fails to achieve. Catch it if you can.’ –The Herald on The Red Room





TOUR DATES


26th October – Dance Live @ The Lemon Tree (Aberdeen)
1st November – The Brunton (Musselburgh)
4th November – Gairloch Hall (West Coast Arts)
6th November – Mull Theatre (Druimfin - Isle of Mull)
7th November – Craignish Village Hall (Ardfern)
9th November – The Traverse Theatre (Edinburgh)
17th November – Beacon Arts Centre (Greenock)
19th November – Eden Court Theatre (Inverness)
20th November – The Macphail Centre (Ullapool)
23rd November – Aros Centre (Isle of Skye)