Edinburgh Fringe dance reviews: Enowate | Fault Lines | Angry Snatch: A Reclamation Job in 15 Rounds | Golem

London-raised Cameroonian dancer Dickson Mbi’s powerful, award-winning evocation of a journey back to his roots leads our latest round-up of outstanding dance shows at the Fringe, reviewed by Kelly Apter and Anahit Behrooz

Enowate | Nick Thornton-Jones & Warren Du Preez

DANCE, PHYSICAL THEATRE & CIRCUS

Enowate ★★★★

Pleasance Courtyard (Venue 33) until 25 August

You can see it in the way he holds himself at the end, that Enowate has consumed every cell in Dickson Mbi’s body. Taking a few seconds to ‘come to’ before he can take a bow, he looks lost in the moment – or, more particularly, lost in his history. For this powerful solo work was inspired by Dickson’s visit to Cameroon, to the village his family hails from, miles away (in every possible sense) from his upbringing in the east end of London.

The piece won Dickson the 2023 Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Dance, and it’s easy to see why. Despite being a deeply personal work that can only connect so far with those of us outside his experience, Enowate (which means ‘truth stands’) reaches out from the darkness and pulls you in. The piece opens with Mbi in playful mode, giving a nod to his football-playing adolescence as he throws imaginary balls into the audience. But there’s also a heaviness to his movement, as he struggles to lift his foot, hand and head. It’s as if they’re buried under the weight of expectation, captured in the voiceover we hear telling Mbi what he should have achieved by now.

A shift in lighting, movement style and intensity finds him bent over, face hidden from view, skin glistening from the exertion. Animal-like he undulates his torso, legs scurrying across the stage. If there’s a regret here, it’s that we don’t see more of the captivating upright choreography briefly exhibited earlier in the piece. But all is forgiven when the stunning animation by Nick Hillel and Adam Smith appears, covering a gossamer curtain in the closing moments. A galaxy of stars appear and disappear, surrounding Mbi in light, summoning up the spirit of his ancestors and providing the audience with an unforgettable ending.

Kelly Apter

DANCE, PHYSICAL THEATRE & CIRCUS

Fault Lines ★★★

Assembly @ Dance Base (Venue 22) until 25 August

It’s hard to deny the important climate change message at the heart of this energetic show from Dorset-based company Lila Dance. A little more subtlety would hammer it home less deliberately, but perhaps more effectively. The choreography speaks volumes on its own, pulsing along at a fast pace and with a fervent urgency our politicians would do well to replicate. The company has also enlisted some fine dancers who put their heart and soul into the piece, whether they’re delivering abstract movement or straightforward narrative.

It's never easy to dance and speak at the same time, however, and great acting and great dancing often struggle to coexist. Which leads to a slight clunkiness as the piece jumps from choreography to dialogue to animation, each one fighting for its place in the piece rather than seamlessly coexisting. But there’s an earnestness to this endeavour that feels wholesome and honest, and the six athletic dancers deliver sharp, clean moves. Optimistically, having (quite rightly) frightened us with statistics about rising temperatures, the piece ends in a place of hope.

Kelly Apter

DANCE, PHYSICAL THEATRE AND CIRCUS

Angry Snatch: A Reclamation Job in 15 Rounds ★★★★

Port O'Leith Boxing Club - Boxing Ring / Gym Area (Venue 331) until 24 August

No actual depictions of violence will be shown in Angry Snatch: A Reclamation Job in 15 Rounds, we are informed by a cool, calm voiceover in the first few minutes. No upsetting images, no jump scares, no sudden brutality. But violence – its unnerving absence, its chilling inevitability – sits heavy and choked over the 70 minutes of the play. A physical theatre piece set in a boxing ring and fragmented over 15 rounds, Angry Snatch subverts languages of power and threat in order to explore the devastation domestic abuse can leave behind.

The setting of the boxing ring, taking place in the real life Port O’Leith Boxing Club, could easily follow a predictable narrative of reclamation, yet there is a real cleverness to the way space is used in this play. The roped-off square of the ring, within which our singular actor is trapped, acts as both home and cage, creating a terrifying slippage between the two. Innovative lighting and sound design, meanwhile, are used with cinematic effect: transforming the fluorescent-lit, rubber-scented space of the gym into a claustrophobic world soaked in red light and reverberating with stifled cries and sudden bells.

Written and performed by performance artist Frankie Walker, Angry Snatch’s vignette-like structure eschews easy teleology and allows for an impressionistic examination of intimate partner violence. All the sections are well considered, although certain moments are more memorable than others: a phone conversation with an automated helpline plays out with a Kafka-esque futility, while an hypnotic lyrical piece on the impossibility of sleep pulls the tension taut. The duality of this approach – the intimacy of individual trauma, the fury against the structures that permit it – is gutting and enraging in equal measure. No violence is shown, but its presence across every layer of society is palpable.

Anahit Behrooz

DANCE, PHYSICAL THEATRE & CIRCUS

Golem ★★★★

Assembly @ Dance Base (Venue 22) until 25 August

A coming together of three artistic disciplines and two generations, Golem is an incredibly special work that gets under your skin. Three men: a dancer, a sculptor and a drummer, each an expert in their own field, reflect on the passing of time and its impact on the body.

Belgian dancer Julien Carlier (whose company this is), specialises in hip hop but the edges of his movement have been smoothed out, giving his choreography a loose, almost aquatic feel. Canadian born sculptor Mike Sprogis works with clay live on stage, pushing and pulling it with his strong hands, deftly turning a lump of nothingness into something with more humanity. While Belgian drummer Tom Malmendier sits to the side, soundtracking their every move with recorded music and precise live drumming.

As Sprogis stands in his overalls, we hear a voiceover telling us about his practice and how he prepares for a day in the studio. Then he sets to work, digging his fingers into the malleable dark orange substance as we await the outcome with fascination. Around him, dances Carlier, filling the space with subtle yet strong breakdance moves and wearing a jumper the same colour as Sprogis’ clay. As the show progresses, the movement becomes more tired, the clay heavier - and we see the 75-year-old sculptor visibly struggling to lift and carry the large block.

When Sprogis sets the clay aside and works instead on Carlier’s body, manipulating it as he would any material, Golem becomes even more touching. As his legs are lifted, head gently titled and torso shifted, Carlier is at once himself and an everyman. The marks left behind on the stage, where clay has been dragged and rolled, serve as a reminder of the impact we have on life - and the impact life has on us.

Kelly Apter