More reviews and tweets about Beauty Of The Beast by Company Chameleon confirm this is one of the company’s most successful productions to date.
“Ferocious dance theatre … Headbanging, football chants and military drill combine in these rowdy and hilarious routines choreographed by Anthony Missen” Guardian ****
“Beauty of the Beast by Company Chameleon is a bit like an animated lads magazine, albeit one where the boys get in touch with their feminine side… and what lads they are…. The energy is huge and the performances flawless. It is slick and looks well-rehearsed and I am sure that they are all pussycats really. I hope. Go see.” Critical Dance
“fierce funny and spot on about men” Judith Mackrell on Twitter
“outstanding hour of absorbing dance theatre” Graham Watts on Twitter
Choreographed by Anthony Missen, Beauty Of The Beast is a funny, moving and subversive look at male groups, peeling back the unwritten codes of camaraderie and compliance that glue the gang together. With an all male cast, Beauty Of The Beast showcases the company’s highly physical style, combining dance, theatre and music to hold up a mirror to our times. video trailer
“Anthony Missen steers this blend of theatre and dance with assurance… The newly minted gang of six veer between aggressive football chanting and group harmonies; standing defiantly eyeballing the audience with their hands down their trousers and adopting prayer prostrations. They switch effectively through moods, from menacing to goofy to angst-ridden to contemplative, charging the unadorned stage space with meaning, whether they are showing the exhilaration of camaraderie or the fear created by overt hostility” Londondance.com
“a very well-judged work …. It roars with confident testosterone but shows us the fears and uncertainties that whisper underneath”. Dance Tabs
“effectively uses really impactful dance theatre to investigate personal and social life for young men living in the UK now” The Public
“The athleticism and gymnastic ability on display is exhilarating … I can’t ever remember laughing so much during contemporary dance ”. What’s On Stage
Chameleon is touring throughout the year:
13 May Dukes, Lancaster
19 May Theatre Royal, Margate
17 July Lattitude Festival
18-30 Aug DanceBase, Edinburgh
11 Nov Gulbenkian, Canterbury
19 Nov Pegasus Theatre, Oxford
24 Nov The Arts Centre, Edge Hill University
25 Nov Curve Theatre, Leicester