High level dance at the Merlin

There’s a dance show with a difference at the Merlin on Saturday 2nd May at 7.45pm when ZoieLogic Dance Theatre presents ‘SAFE’. 

Both story and setting reflect the all-male company’s athleticism and masculinity as the dancers take on the roles of the heroic construction workers of New York in 1930, the men whose skills, dedication and sheer bravery raised the Empire State Building in little more than a year.

‘SAFE’ is performed on a set designed from steel, aluminium and wood which builds as the show progresses and employs a range of powerful music from jazz to classical and electronic to express the ambition and optimism of the enterprise and the bravado and collective spirit of the workers.

Director Zoie Golding’s aim is to challenge stereotypes of men in dance; she was inspired to create the show by visiting the Empire State Building and speculating about the lives of the men who built it. ‘SAFE’, the resulting production, is dance theatre at its most thrilling.

Tickets are £12 adults, £8 concessions but dance students are offered a bargain price of £5. Go to www.merlintheatre.co.uk to book or call 01373 465949. There is a pre-show supper (£7 mains, £3 pudding) available 45 minutes before the performance – contact Keren Hayden at kerenhayden@gmail.com or on 07968 753632 to book supper.