Ben Goode samples Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui's Shaolin inspired masterpiece at Sadler's Wells
The inherent physicality of the Shaolin tradition lends itself incredibly well to the theatre of dramatic spectacle that is performance art, the operative word here being 'art'. This is no Cottles circus on Brighton's pebble beach. From the very title, Sutra (Sanskrit for somefink – in this case referring to the Buddhist canonical scriptures) we should know that this is high brow stuff.
A sparse set consisting of 17 wooden caskets (designed by celebrated British sculptor Antony Gormley) are used by the Shaolin monks with no small amount of ingenuity to unravel the enigma of the Shaolin Monastery. As the bodies flow between the solid wooden caskets the synthesis of distinct art forms is always empathetic and never incongruous. It's an affecting combination.
Sutra has a narrative of sorts, a physical narrative devoid of words, which only serves to make the connection between performers and audience a more intuitive and emotional one. The protagonist (Ali Ben Lofti Thabet) is led on a physical and spiritual journey of self discovery by a young Shaolin boy (the exemplary Shi Yanzhi) who helps him circumnavigate the pitfalls of a hitherto unknown mystical quantity.
On his voyage he is frustrated, intimidated and humorously shown up. He comes face to face with a variety of Shaolin styles, each an arresting display of centuries old physical tradition merged with contemporary dance. It's sometimes aggressive, sometimes playful, but always jaw-dropping in texture, form and suspension.
As with so much of Sidi Larbi's work, Sutra emphatically succeeds in borrowing from disparate forms of physical theatre, in this case contemporary dance and the Shaolin discipline. It also manages to retain the aspects so eminently transferable to the stage and the rationale of a western theatre going audience. The entire production is shrouded with just enough mystery to engage our desire to be a part of something greater than ourselves.
The culmination of Sutra is as powerful an ending as I have seen. As they triple back flip, somersault and cartwheel with fancy free abandon, one gets the impression, amid all the applause, that it has been as enjoyable a journey for them as for us.
Sutra runs at Sadler's Wells until 26th March
Photo Credit: Hugo Glendinning
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