Rosie Kay Dance Company, 10 Soldiers Online

Rosie Kay Dance Company's 10 Soldiers is the expanded version of Kay's phenomenally successful 5 Soldiers, which premiered in 2010 to great acclaim and a raft of four and five star reviews. You can read Culture Whisper's own five-star review here.

Research and preparation for 5 Soldiers saw Kay and her dancers immerse themselves completely into army life, so as to find the exact ways to portray through dance the pressures of life in the military and the impact of combat on the human body and spirit. It was designed to be seen in small spaces, such as army barracks and drill halls; and whereas those small, intimate spaces, where the audience felt part of the action, were ideal, they were also obscure and not immediately accessible to the wider public.

So, in 2019 with the support of the Birmingham Hippodrome, Rosie Kay expanded the original work, doubling the number of dancers to eight men and two women and making it longer, from one hour straight through to 80 minutes with an interval.

The expanded work loses a little in intimacy, but gains power in other ways. For example, 10 is roughly the number of soldiers in a British army section, and so 10 Soldiers becomes a lot closer to reality.

We see the new recruits arrive for their induction; as they go through the required drills, their personalities start to come through and we get to know each individual. In the same way, they get to know each other and camaraderie grows, as do interpersonal relationships.

We see them then having a last night of civilian revelry, letting their hair down before going off to war. And we witness the impact of combat on themselves and their lives.

Kay's choreography shows her extraordinary ability to turn the movements of military drills into highly expressive and athletic dance, as well as finding the perfect balance between scenes that illustrate demanding collective discipline and quieter, more meditative scenes that take us into the subjectivity of individual soldiers.

Rosie Kay Dance Company dancers are perfectly attuned to her style and give thoroughly convincing, immersive performances. And atmospheric design by Louis Price, using realistic video projections, precisely anchors the action, be it in the drill ground, a nightclub or the theatre of war.

We cannot recommend 10 Soldiers highly enough!