Shechter II, Show, Lyric Hammersmith

The Brighton-based Israeli choreographer Hofesh Shechter has made it his mission to bring raw, loud and in-your-face contemporary dance to all audiences, in particular young people more used to rock gigs than august performance theatres.

So, for example, he reworked his landmark 2010 Political Mother to be shown at the Brixton O2 Academy, where it was rapturously received by packed houses and added to his already loyal and vocal following

A couple of years ago Shechter extended the reach of his company by creating a junior troupe, Shechter II. Its 2018 incarnation is made up of eight young international performers chosen through a rigorous audition last summer.

This is the group Shechter is bringing to the Lyric Hammersmith with a three act programme called Show. His 2016 Clowns, which won critic acclaim when performed by the Nederlands Dans Theater in the Hague, will be sandwiched between two other works called, appropriately, The Entrance and Exit.

Danced to Shechter’s own pulsating, vertiginous, percussion-heavy score, Show revolves around a group of anarchy performers as they play their part in a macabre circus of comedy, murder and desire. As with all of Shechter’s work, it is loud, forceful, often funny and at times touching; it is certain to make its mark on the audience.

With Clowns already a proven success, much anticipation surrounds Show as a whole not only in Britain, but internationally, as this programme comes to the Lyric Hammersmith as part of a world tour.