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The Red Room at The Grand Theatre

The Red Room
David Hughes
David Hughes

Starring and choreographed by acclaimed dancer David Hughes, with direction from award-winning Al Seed, The Red Room is based on The Masque of the Red Death by Edgar Allen Poe. The company of performers merge a multitude of dance traditions from ballet, break dance, contemporary dance, Bharatanatyam and energetic physical theatre to engender a modern day Gothic horror story depicting a prince with his party of debauched revellers who are ignoring the world outside and its plague ridden troubles. Sometimes a little grotesque and visually a little disturbing, the performance is accompanied by a dramatic classical original score influenced by Handel, Vivaldi and Baroque Telemann but also with a contemporary electronic feel.

David Hughes described the piece:

I wanted to try something different, to confront the audience. There are a lot of fluffy dance shows out there but this is more dramatic, yet both pretty and nightmarish. The story is very in keeping with what’s happening nowadays as they (the politicians) live in a castle, not out there in the street where it’s all going on. It’s an unfairy tale, different aristocracies have their own language, the elite, they are the ones who have no sense of what is happening outside.

Starting life in Leeds as a boy, David studied movement and drama at junior school and then danced with a youth group before he travelled down to London aged 16 to join the London contemporary dance school. Here David was mentored by Bob Cohan where this heralded the arrival of ‘a new breed of dancer’ and was a prolific time with David playing iconic roles such as Christopher Bruce’s ‘Rooster’.

In the summer of 2009, David Hughes Dance completed a hugely successful tour including a run at The Traverse Theatre as part of The Edinburgh Festival. The Red Room received rave reviews as well as winning The Herald Award and a Total Theatre Special Commendation.

The Red Room
The Red Room

This is the only UK performance of The Red Room, with the show coming over from Germany for just the one night. David’s naturally subversive charm helps set this company apart from the others, “I want to challenge people who come to the theatre but at the same time we want people to come through the door without any expectations/preconceptions. I want people to support  The Grand Theatre. They should take a look at the ceiling and all around, and even admire the architecture if they don’t like the show’’

The Red Room comes to Blackpool on Sunday 21st April 2013. Tickets £10, Concessions £8. To book call The Grand Theatre Box Office on 01253 290190 or visit the Grand Theatre Website.

 

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