The magic of Alchemy fascinates and brings crowd to their feet

Last night’s performance at the Corn Exchange by the Liam Francis Dance Company was a truly inspiring evening which left the audience on their feet and fascinated. This was contemporary dance that everyone can access and we were delighted by this Brighton success story who is clearly heading to the top of his game.

The evening was separated into three sections, with the curtain raiser a performance by A leveldDance students from BHASVIC. This short piece, focusing on inclusion, exclusion and group relationships, was elegantly performed by the students, showing a real commitment to their work. The group seemed to show no concern about being in such a prestigious venue, and each of them interacted to present a tableau of movement that was confident and well-crafted. Liam Francis is himself an ex-BHASVIC student and has workshopped the piece with them. Speaking with a couple of performers in the break, they told us how privileged they felt to have been part of the piece and how much they appreciated his input and advice. It certainly set the tone for what was to come.

Liam Francis took the stage to perform a solo self-choreographed piece next called ‘Lyre Liar‘. The piece features him recreating works by choreographers, including Merce Cunningham and Kate Prince, who have influenced his own journey. It started with a reflective piece using a large mirror and a silhouette projection that showed close and introverted work building to crescendos as he moved into the large dance space. We then saw him using a mixed media approach to tell his own story. Part presentation, part personal storytelling, he wove the Australian Lyrebird’s behaviour into the story, showing us how he sees himself as a dancer within the works he performs.

This piece could not have been more personal or engaging. As each component was presented, Francis removed another layer of clothing, revealing another level of depth in his character. He seamlessly moved between personas and presented new information for us to absorb, each time ensuring we knew where we were going with the performance and why it was important for us to understand. His movement was mesmeric, his body responding to the different music and stimuli as he showed us his emotions through movement.

Francis made it easy to join the conversation, even extending his movements into the audience, where we were happy to be included. Everybody joined in! This accomplished piece really showed us who he was as a person and a dancer. His use of costume was fantastic, as was the lighting throughout, but it was his storytelling that really came through. There were so many unexpected elements, and a real truth in what he was telling us. We could have watched for hours.

The final piece was an ensemble piece called ‘A Body Of Rumours’, performed by Francis, with dancers Eloy Cojal Mestre, Jacob Wye and Stephen Quildan, and live electronic music provided by Chloe Mason. This piece focused on what it means to belong, with a group of four black male dancers exploring isolation and rivalry.

This was a complete contrast, but again showcased Francis as a master of choreography. The soundscape for the piece was being created live by Chloe Mason using directional microphones that picked up the slightest squeak or thud from a dancer’s foot. She then morphed these sounds and combined them with prerecorded moments from other shows, creating a pulsing, vibrant landscape for the dancers to respond to. The lighting was dark and moody, often obscuring facial features, so the men’s bodies had to do all the work of communicating their messages. As they moved from discord to harmony and back again, they showed us what it meant to be together on stage, and to be alone within themselves. Each dancer showed their joy in movement, and as they moved together intimately, we picked up the weight of the need for community.

As the final date on a short tour, the evening ended with a question-and-answer session, during which Francis and the other performers shared their motivations and personal journeys with the audience.

This was truly an astonishing evening and one that we will talk about for some time to come. It showed Francis’s journey from Brighton and how much the city still means to him. We felt immensely proud of the whole company, which is clearly on the path to great things. They put effort and emotion into every second they spent on stage.

If you have never watched contemporary dance and think it is too much of a leap into the unknown, this is a great place to start. This company combine first-rate movement with fascinating choreography and we felt completely invited into this world. We will be following his career with great interest and look forward to seeing him in Brighton again soon.