Rambert2 is a spectacular and charged performance with dancers of incredible physicality,
elasticity, and vigour. I believe they earned the standing ovation; less so the choreographers.
Rambert2 is made of three pieces, of which Sin, choreographed by Damien Jalet and Sidi
Larbi Cherkaoui, is the most striking and beautiful. Sin is sandwiched between a
disappointing and dated piece with a scifi flavour and an explosive but crowded and uneven
piece at the end.

The first piece opens with dancers in space-like suit playing an impossible game of words.
The theatrical side is quickly ditched and left unresolved to move to fun and rhythm. It lacks
a journey, cohesiveness, and beauty. The final piece brims with colour and movement. It
shows off the dancers’ agility, strength, and smoothness. They also show skill and
coordination in working a rather limited stage. Sin is simply mesmerising. It is a gripping
duet capturing the conflictual nature of desire, the life force of eroticism, and annihilation. It
is beautiful and beautifully executed.

Rambert2 is a bonfire of energy with uneven pieces. Its main weakness lies in being too
concerned with effect. It is ‘stagy’ with an expert use of music, lights, and showing off talent.
It wants to entertain the audience and overall it succeeds. Yet, it does so by relinquishing the
poetry that is present in Sin and at the beginning of the final piece.

Rambert2 was part of Cardiff Dance Festival, performed at Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama

(First Published on Groundwork Pro and Cardiff Dance Festival)