Neon Dance, Prehension Blooms, The Place

It seems that science and robotics are making ever greater inroads into the realm of human expression. Who can forget Blanca Li's totally endearing humanoid robots, and their propensity to seize up at the most inappropriate of times during performance? And who can ignore Alexander Whitley's fascinating ongoing exploration of the interface between the body and technology?

These are just two examples of an interesting trend in dance, to which we must now add Prehension Blooms, the work of the Swindon-based company Neon Dance in collaboration with Bristol Robotics Lab, which will tour the country in the autumn, coming to The Place mid-October.

Billed as both a high-concept art installation and emotive, innovative contemporary dance show, Prehension Blooms has the audience sitting in the performance area. This is transformed into a totally alien world, where human dancers – Fukiko Takase and Travis Clausen-Knight – interact with specially made robots, named by the team as 'hōki-mon' (rake monsters), and the audience, too, become part of the performance. The whole thing is set to a cinematic soundscape by Sebastian Reynolds.

Prehension Blooms was choreographed and directed by Neon Dance stalwart Adrienne Hart, who says the essence of the piece is an exploration of the nature of companionship and loneliness.

Age Guidance: 10+