The best dance of 2022
London hosted outstanding dance in 2022
Mark Bruce Company, Phantoms review ★★★★★
Mark Bruce returned to Wilton's Music Hall with Phantoms, a triple bill of weird and wonderful psychological dance, performed by his remarkable five-strong company.
Read more ...Lucinda Childs/Philip Glass, Dance review ★★★★★
The absolute highlight of the pioneering edition of Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels, Lucinda Childs's Dance, set to a minimalist score by Philip Glass was impeccably performed by Lyon Opera Ballet.
Read more ...ENB, The Forsythe Evening review ★★★★★
English National Ballet brought pizzazz, energy and technical prowess to the stage, alongside a whole lot of fun, with its Forsythe Evening showcasing work by the American choreographer William Forsythe.
Read more ...Paco Peña, Solera review ★★★★★
Showing once more that age is but a number, the veteran virtuoso flamenco guitarist Paco Peña returned to Sadler's Wells with his latest show Solera, probing a little deeper into the very soul of flamenco.
Read more ...Northern Ballet, Casanova review ★★★★★
Fast-moving, raunchy, ultimately moving, Northern Ballet's Casanova returned to London to tell the multifaceted story of the famous 18th-century libertine, Giacomo Casanova.
Read more ...American Ballet Theatre Studio Company review ★★★★★
Definitely the most thrilling participants in this year's Next Generation Festival at the Linbury, American Ballet Theatre's Junior Company dazzled with its young dancers' technique, attack and sheer self-confidence.
Read more ...Scottish Ballet, The Crucible review ★★★★★
Scottish Ballet made a rare foray into London with The Crucible, Helen Pickett's deeply intelligent and ultimately devastating adaptation of Arthur Miller's play about the Salem witch hunts.
Read more ...Compañía María Pagés, An Ode to Time review ★★★★★
Sadler's Wells annual Flamenco Festival was full of little gems, including its regular Gala Flamenca; but nothing grabbed us more than An Ode to Time, by Compañía María Pagés.
Read more ...The Royal Ballet, Mayerling review ★★★★★
The Royal Ballet marked the 30th anniversary of choreographer Kenneth MacMillan's death with a run of his masterpiece Mayerling. Out of a variety of remarkable casts, we would highlight the stunning, very personal debuts of Vadim Muntagirov and Marcelino Sambé in the lead role of Crown Prince Rudolf.
Read more ...Review: Rambert, Peaky Blinders: The Redemption of Thomas Shelby ★★★★★
Rambert crossed yet another bridge in its evolution as a dance company with Peaky Blinders: The Redemption of Thomas Shelby, a difficult-to-pigeonhole spectacular inspired by the hit TV series.
Read more ...Aakash Odedra Company, Samsara review ★★★★★
Two compelling dancers from different traditions, Aakash Odedra and Hu Shenyuan took to the stage to enact Odedra'a ambitious cross-cultural epic, Samsara. It was, we found, hypnotic.
Read more ...Review: Israel Galván, La Consagración de la Primavera ★★★★★
In possibly the most original and breath-taking show of the year, maverick flamenco dancer Israel Galván grabbed Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring by the scruff of the neck and made it very much his own in La Consagración de la Primavera.
Read more ...Lost Dog, Ruination review ★★★★★
Presented as an alternative to the sweetness overload of the Christmas season, Lost Dog's Ruination, director and choreographer Ben Duke's funny, transporting, zany and thought-provoking take on the myth of Medea, settled in the ROH Linbury Theatre.
Read more ...The Royal Ballet, The Nutcracker review ★★★★★
The year ends, as it must, with the Christmas ballet to beat all Christmas ballets: The Nutcracker, with The Royal Ballet's near-perfect production firmly installed on the ROH main stage.
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