Hofesh Shechter: From England With Love; International Draft Work – review

Queen Elizabeth Hall; Linbury theatre, Royal Opera House, London
Shechter’s young dancers thrill in his hellish vision of England. Elsewhere, emerging choreographers from Brno to Birmingham showcase short works

Under a smoky spotlight a group of young people assembles in approximations of school uniform, crests on their blazers, rucksacks on their backs. They look like any raggle-taggle bunch of youngsters anywhere, scruffy and relaxed. Then, as Elgar’s Nimrod soars on the soundtrack, they raise their arms in delicate attitudes, sweeping circles where the hands are at first gracefully curved, before gradually morphing into pointing fingers and clenched fists.

Each gesture is perfectly smooth and precisely calibrated. As the sound of driving rain replaces music, the group is off, crossing the stage in a rolling, slo-mo flow, cheeks puffed out, hands over their scalps, writhing, hopping, waggling their heads, both wild and classically shaped. It’s movement that feels compulsive, and it represents both the strengths and the limitations of Hofesh Shechter’s approach.