Jan McNulty

For immediate release: Thursday 14 March 2024

World-renowned choreographer and dancer Akram Khan returns to the stage as Sadler’s Wells announces autumn 2024 season

World-renowned choreographer and dancer Akram Khan returns to his roots and delves into his past in his latest creation: GIGENIS: The generation of the Earth as part of Sadler’s Wells autumn season. The new work sees Khan joined onstage by acclaimed dancers who specialise in different Indian classical styles and live musicians. The full season, announced today, features South Asian dance, ballet, flamenco, contemporary, hip hop, folk, and tap, and includes two world premieres and seven UK premieres.
 
Sir Alistair Spalding CBE, Artistic Director and Co-Chief Executive of Sadler’s Wells said: “Today we are delighted to unveil the remaining 2024 productions on our stages in Angel and the West End. There’s new work from leading international contemporary choreographers including our Associates Michael Keegan-Dolan, Akram Khan and Hofesh Shechter, and our International Associate Company Rosas led by Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker. There’s an opportunity to see work from some of the most exciting, cutting-edge emerging dance makers in the Lilian Baylis Studio, and a fabulous entertainment offer at the Peacock.”
 
Highlights from acclaimed contemporary choreographers on Sadler’s Wells Theatre stage:
 
The UK premiere of Akram Khan’s GIGENIS: The generation of the Earth, a Sadler’s Wells co-production, which explores nature, Mother Earth and mythology. Khan is joined onstage by renowned dancers who specialise in different Indian classical styles including Kathak, Kutiyattam and Bharatanatyam, and seven live musicians.

Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker retraces her steps to the roots of dance and Western pop music in the UK premiere of EXIT ABOVE - after the tempest / d'après la tempête / naar de storm by Sadler’s Wells International Associate Company Rosas.
 
New full-length work from Hofesh Shechter, co-commissioned by Sadler’s Wells, delves into the world of the subconscious: revealing fears, hopes, desires and a myriad of emotions from dreaming minds and waking thoughts. 

Michael Keegan-Dolan presents the London premiere of NOBODADDY. This new work for his company Teaċ Daṁsa is a collaboration with celebrated folk musician Sam Amidon and is co-produced by Sadler’s Wells. 

Abby Zbikowski draws on street dance, synchronised swimming, post-modern dance, tap, football, martial arts and contemporary African forms in the UK premiere of Radioactive Practice, presented with Dance Umbrella. 

A world-class international ballet offer:
 
Birmingham Royal Ballet presents two productions: Luna, a celebration of the pioneering women of Birmingham from an all-female, international creative team featuring choreography from Iratxe Ansa, Wubkje Kuindersma, Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist Seeta Patel, Arielle Smith, and Thais Suárez, and Frederick Ashton’s comical ballet La Fille mal gardée.

Akram Khan’s acclaimed version of Giselle for English National Ballet returns to Sadler’s Wells Theatre.
 
These productions join the previously announced Resurgence by London City Ballet, a mixed bill by National Ballet of Canada and Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake: The Next Generation this autumn as part of Sadler’s Wells year-round Ballet with Attitude programme.
 
Inspiring new dance innovations:

Sadler’s Wells shares innovative choreography from some of the most exciting choreographers in the intimate Lilian Baylis Studio. marikiscrycrycry's DARK, HAPPY, to the CORE: a three-act work taking audiences into a world of ecstasy and euphoria, receives its UK premiere. Inspired by Hieronymus Bosch’s “The Garden of Earthly Delights”, Eva Recacha’s The Picnic, co-commissioned by Sadler’s Wells, explores themes of utopia and misogyny and is devised by a cast of professionals and participants.
 
Mufutau Yusuf makes his Sadler’s Wells debut with Impasse, a physical exploration into the Black diasporic experience while Claire Cunningham examines the act of journeying in Songs of the Wayfarer, a Sadler’s Wells co-commission. Presented in partnership with Serpentine, Greek choreographer and dancer Lenio Kaklea contemplates the forest as a place for metamorphosis in Αγρίμι (Fauve).
 
Following a two-year programme developing their practice, Sadler’s Wells Young Associates BLUE MAKWANA, Elisabeth Mulenga, Maiya Leeke and Roseann & Sula scale up their work and ambition to fill the Sadler’s Wells Theatre stage in Four, a mixed bill of new dance.
 
Entertainment at the Peacock Theatre:
 
At the Peacock Theatre, Sadler’s Wells’ home in the West End, Flamenco Festival favourite Manuel Liñan challenges the defined roles of male and female forms in ¡VIVA! and the family-friendly TUTU from Chicos Mambo sees an all-male cast work their way through an ever-changing, increasingly flamboyant wardrobe.
 
¡VIVA! and TUTU join the previously announced A Night with Janis Joplin, Danny Beard’s Straight Expectations, Stories – The Tap Dance Sensation and The Snowman as well as a one-off evening with Graham Norton to complete the autumn season at the Peacock.

Sadler’s Wells today unveils a new visual identity with bold logos for each of its venues designed by Chestnut Creative.

Tickets for newly announced events are on public sale from Monday 25 March at 10 am via www.sadlerswells.com. Booking opens to members on Friday 22 March.

English National Ballet                                                            SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
Akram Khan’s Giselle                                                              
Wednesday 18 – Saturday 28 September
Tickets from £15

Following acclaimed performances around the world, Akram Khan’s Giselle returns to Sadler’s Wells Theatre in London for the first time in five years.

As the curtain rises, dancers in the shadow push against a forbidding wall, in a bold reimagining of one of the greatest romantic ballets - a story of love, betrayal and redemption.

Mark Henderson's atmospheric lighting and Academy Award-winner Tim Yip's towering set conjure up a condemned factory and the ghosts that haunt it. The score by Vincenzo Lamagna is adapted from the original by Adolphe Adam is performed live by English National Ballet Philharmonic.  

Akram Khan is a Sadler's Wells Associate Artist

Audio-described performance on Saturday 28 September at 2:30 pm with accompanying Touch Tour at 1 pm


Chicos Mambo                                                                        PEACOCK THEATRE
TUTU                                                               
Tuesday 1 – Saturday 5 October
Tickets from £18

This family-friendly show features an all-male cast of six dancers adorned in ever-changing, flamboyant costumes. TUTU lovingly mocks the most classical outfit while the performers skilfully parody more than 40 characters, covering everything from classical ballet to contemporary dance. 

Audiences are treated to a hip-hop version of Swan Lake, a clumsy take on Dirty Dancing, and a dainty version of The Haka, as the cast twists expectations, while maintaining the highest level of performance.



Hofesh Shechter Company                                                      SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
New Creation                                                                           UK PREMIERE            
Wednesday 9 – Saturday 12 October
Tickets from £15

This new full-length evening showcases the physicality and complexity of Hofesh Shechter’s choreography and his inimitable dancers, as they delve into the world of dreams and the subconscious.

The dancers’ bodies will bring to life the interplay between poetry and reality, accompanied by live musicians and Shechter’s trademark cinematic sound-score. For this new creation, Shechter reunites with lighting designer, Tom Visser, to create a powerful, sculptured space to this dreamscape.

Hofesh Shechter is a Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist

New Creation is co-commissioned by Sadler’s Wells

Recommended age guidance 13+

BSL interpreted post-show talk with Hofesh Shechter and Rob Jones on Thursday 10 October 2024

Young Associates                                                                 SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
Four                                                                                                           WORLD PREMIERE       
Tuesday 15 October
Tickets £20

After a sold-out debut in the Lilian Baylis Studio in 2023, the 2023/24 Young Associates BLUE MAKWANA, Elisabeth Mulenga, Maiya Leeke and Roseann & Sula scale up their work to fill the Sadler’s Wells Theatre stage.

This mixed bill is an opportunity for these emerging artists to share what they have developed during the Young Associates programme, each showcasing their distinct and diverse styles as they take the next step in their choreographic careers. 



Manuel Liñán                                                                                     PEACOCK THEATRE
¡VIVA!                                                              
Thursday 17 – Saturday 19 October
Tickets from £18

Award-winning choreographer and dancer, Manuel Liñán returns to Sadler’s Wells with ¡VIVA!, a flamenco drag show nominated for an outstanding achievement in dance at the Olivier Awards 2023.

Inspired by childhood dreams of wearing his female idols’ costumes, Liñán’s work combines the strongest elements of the flamenco form with his own creative and comedic queer expression. 

The performance features dances showcasing traditional rhythmic footwork, curving arms and slaps to the thighs such as alegrías, tárantos and bulerías.



Dance Umbrella & Sadler’s Wells present                                           SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
Abby Z and the New Utility’s Radioactive Practice                               UK PREMIERE          
Friday 18 – Saturday 19 October
Tickets from £15

Six performers challenge their physical and mental limits in a genre-bending new work named one of The New York Times’ ‘Best Dance Performances of 2022.’

Drawing influences from street dance, synchronised swimming, post-modern dance, tap, football, martial arts and contemporary African forms; Radioactive Practice from award-winning American choreographer Abby Zbikowski and her company Abby Z and the New Utility incorporates the work of Senegalese dance artist Momar Ndiaye as dramaturge to interrogate the complexities of contemporary living.    

Radioactive Practice marks the company’s UK debut as part of Dance Umbrella Festival 2024.

BSL interpreted post-show talk with Freddie Opoku-Addaie and the creative team and on Friday 18 October 2024 



Birmingham Royal Ballet                                                         SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
Luna 
Tuesday 22 – Wednesday 23 October
La Fille mal gardée                                                                  
Friday 25 – Saturday 26 October
Tickets from £15

Birmingham Royal Ballet (BRB) returns to Sadler’s Wells with new work and a classically comedic ballet.

Luna is a new piece inspired by the pioneering women of Birmingham that forms the final part of Carlos Acosta’s Birmingham trilogy (City of a Thousand Trades, Black Sabbath). With an all-female, international creative team, including choreographers Iratxe Ansa (Spain), Wubkje Kuindersma (Netherlands), Seeta Patel (UK), Arielle Smith (UK), Thais Suárez (Cuba) and music composed by Kate Whitley (UK), Luna will explore contemporary universal themes.

BRB will also present Sir Frederick Ashton's celebrated La Fille mal gardée (The Wayward Daughter) which mixes classical ballet with slick comedy. This is the first time La Fille mal gardée has been presented by BRB under the directorship of Carlos Acosta, who, for many, is one of the definitive interpreters of Colas in this sunny, effervescent ballet.

Audio described performance on Saturday 26 October at 2:30 pm with accompanying Touch Tour at 12 pm



Serpentine & Sadler’s Wells present                                                    LILIAN BAYLIS STUDIO
Lenio Kaklea - Αγρίμι (Fauve)                                                                       UK PREMIERE
Thursday 31 October – Friday 1 November
Tickets: £17  

In new performance commission Αγρίμι (Fauve), Lenio Kaklea choreographs a ‘rewilding of bodies’. Through on-stage exercises, dances and rituals, she explores the forest as a place both physical and imaginary for identities to dissolve and bodies to metamorphose. Here, humans and animals scatter and hide, stalking, pursuing and trapping each other. Places of calm and meditation, of ecstasy and vivid life, forests can also be threatening and toxic environments.

As the first performance that links Kaklea’s choreography to the geographical, environmental and poetic richness of forests, this work presents dance as a wild zone to be defended. 

Αγρίμι (Fauve) is presented by Serpentine in partnership with Sadler’s Wells.

Post-show talk with Lenio Kaklea on Thursday 31 October


marikiscrycrycry                                                                      LILIAN BAYLIS STUDIO
DARK, HAPPY, to the CORE                                        UK PREMIERE            
Thursday 7 – Friday 8 November
Tickets £17

DARK, HAPPY, to the CORE is a three-act work that takes a boisterous peek into the study of the mythos of ecstasy and euphoria. Originally commissioned by Roskilde Festival, the performance explores what makes us human and what binds us together through archetypes: ‘The Goner’, ‘The Oracle’, ‘The Pop Star’, ‘The Athlete’, ‘Goth Chick’, ‘The Angel’ and ‘The Business Guy’. DARK, HAPPY, to the CORE journeys through ritual darkness, the happy hardcore all the way to calm, collective, Caribbeanist cool.  

marikiscrycrycry (Malik Nashad Sharpe) is an award-winning choreographer and movement director known for provocative and engaging performance works. marikiscrycrycry presents works internationally in theatres, galleries, and festivals and in 2022, was featured on the Forbes 30 under 30 list. 

Post-show talk with Malik Nashad Sharpe and Rob Jones on Thursday 7 November


Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker / Rosas                               SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
EXIT ABOVE - after the tempest / d'après la tempête / naar de storm      UK PREMIERE            
Tuesday 12 – Wednesday 13 November
Tickets from £25

Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker explores walking as a primary form of movement, and the tension between marching together and stepping out alone in EXIT ABOVE. As a soundtrack to this exploration, De Keersmaeker returns to the roots of Western pop and blues music. 

Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker founded Rosas in 1983 in Belgium. Her choreographic practice draws its formal principles from geometry, numerical patterns, the natural world, and social structures and is grounded in a rigorous exploration of the relationship between dance and music.

Rosas is a Sadler’s Wells International Associate Company

BSL interpreted post-show talk with Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker and Sir Alistair Spalding on Tuesday 12 November 2024.
 

Mufutau Yusuf                                                             LILIAN BAYLIS STUDIO
Impasse                                                                                               
Thursday 14 – Friday 15 November
Tickets £17

Mufutau Yusuf makes his Lilian Baylis Studio debut with Impasse, a physical exploration into the diasporic experience, particularly the Black African diaspora. 

Impasse questions what it means to be a diasporic entity, how you inhabit spaces in which your existence is not clearly marked, and how memory becomes critical to your identity. It’s also an attempt to understand the nuances and complexities around the autonomy of Black bodies, in and out of western space.

Post-show talk with Mufutau Yusuf and Rob Jones on Thursday 14 November

Commissioned by Liz Roche Company through an Arts Council Commission Award / An Chomhairle Ealaíon. Funded by The Arts Council / An Chomhairle Ealaíon. Supported by Solstice Arts Centre, Dublin Dance Festival, Maison de la Danse, Dance Cork Firkin Crane, Irish Arts Centre, and Ultima Vez



Productions Sarfati                                                                 SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
GIGENIS: The generation of the Earth                                                  UK PREMIERE  
Akram Khan                                                                                      
Wednesday 20 – Sunday 24 November
Tickets from £15

Akram Khan returns to Sadler’s Wells Theatre in GIGENIS: The generation of the Earth, sharing the stage with an ensemble of renowned artists of Indian classical dance and seven live musicians. A choreographer and dancer rooted in the tradition of his practice, and a creative interpreter of stories that need to be experienced - Khan has revolutionised the world of dance.  

In GIGENIS, Khan returns to his roots, to his traditions, and to his past in this new production – to a time when we were more connected with nature, Mother Earth and our mythology.

Akram Khan is a Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist

GIGENIS: The generation of the Earth is a Sadler’s Wells co-production

BSL interpreted post show talk on Thursday 21 November with Akram Khan and Sir Alistair Spalding CBE


Michael Keegan-Dolan/ Teaċ Daṁsa                                                   SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE
NOBODADDY                                                                                                   LONDON PREMIERE
Tríd an bpoll gan bun
Wednesday 27 – Saturday 30 November
Tickets from £15

Teaċ Daṁsa, the dance and theatre company based in Ireland’s West Kerry Gaeltacht, brings together familiar and new collaborators to make NOBODADDY. This new work invites audiences and performers on a journey that will quieten some of the tyrannies arresting us.   
  
Led by choreographer and Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist Michael Keegan-Dolan in collaboration with celebrated folk musician and song collector Sam Amidon and an international company of dancers and musicians, NOBODADDYconfronts the flat-line experience of exploitation and cynicism.  

Before arriving in London, NOBODADDY premieres as part of the BELFAST 2024 cultural celebrations and opens the 2024 Dublin Theatre Festival.  

BSL interpreted post show talk on Thursday 28 November with Michael Keegan-Dolan and Rob Jones

NOBODADDY is a Sadler’s Wells co-production

Michael Keegan-Dolan is a Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist



Eva Recacha                                                                                               LILIAN BAYLIS STUDIO
The Picnic                                                                                       WORLD PREMIERE     
Wednesday 27 – Friday 29 November
Tickets £17

Sadler’s Wells co-commission The Picnic is a new full-length work by Eva Recacha which presents a group of young people enjoying themselves in a surreal blend of parading, celebrating, indulging and co-operating activities, as they emerge from a dreamlike picnic scenario. 

The work, co-created with a cast of professionals and participants, explores themes of utopia and misogyny and it is inspired by the painting The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch, which presents many human figures in a terrestrial paradise, indulging in worldly pleasures.

Post-show talk with Eva Recacha and Rob Jones on Thursday 28 November

Co-commissioned by Sadler’s Wells and South East Dance, with support from London Contemporary Dance School. 

Supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England.



Claire Cunningham                                                                  LILIAN BAYLIS STUDIO
Songs of the Wayfarer                                                UK PREMIERE            
Wednesday 4 – Friday 6 December
Tickets £17

In this new solo from one of the UK’s most acclaimed and internationally renowned disabled artists, Claire Cunningham returns to the Lilian Baylis Studio to examine the act of journeying, drawing comparisons with the world of mountaineering and inspiration from Gustav Mahler’s Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen (Songs of a Wayfarer). 

She re-engages with her past as a classical singer to reframe our vision of journeying, craft, and outdoor encounter through a crip* lens. 

*crip is a political and cultural identity embraced by some disabled individuals

Co-commissioned by Sadler's Wells 

Relaxed, BSL Interpretation, Captioning & Audio Description for all performances
Touch Tour on Thursday 5 December at 7pm

BSL-interpreted post show talk on Wednesday 4 December with Associate Artistic Director Rob Jones and Claire Cunningham
 

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Choreographer Conversations:

Join acclaimed choreographers in conversation with Sadler’s Wells Artistic Director and Co-Chief Executive Sir Alistair Spalding CBE, to discover what moves the world’s most influential choreographers working in dance today. The live conversations are recorded for Sadler’s Wells Digital Stage.

Oona Doherty                                                              LILIAN BAYLIS STUDIO
Saturday 13 July at 6.15 pm
Tickets: £5

 

NOTES TO EDITORS

About Sadler’s Wells     
Sadler's Wells is a world-leading dance organisation. We strive to make and share dance that inspires us all. Our acclaimed year-round programme spans dance of every kind, from contemporary to flamenco, Bollywood to ballet, salsa to street dance and tango to tap.  

We commission, produce and present more dance than any other organisation in the world. Since 2005, we have helped to bring more than 200 new dance works to the stage, embracing both the popular and the unknown. Our acclaimed productions tour the world. Since 2005 we’ve produced 64 new full-length works and performed to audiences of more than two million, touring to 51 countries.  

Each year, over half a million people visit our three London theatres - Sadler’s Wells Theatre, Lilian Baylis Studio and Peacock Theatre. Millions more attend our touring productions nationally and internationally or explore our digital platforms, including Sadler’s Wells Digital Stage.

Sadler’s Wells East  
In 2024 we’re opening a fourth London venue in Stratford’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. Sadler’s Wells East will house a 550-seat mid-scale theatre, as well as facilities for the new Rose Choreographic School and the hip hop theatre training centre, Academy Breakin’ Convention. 

Sadler’s Wells East joins the rich cultural heritage of Stratford, opening in London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park as part of the East Bank development alongside the BBC, UAL’s London College of Fashion, UCL and the V&A. Sadler’s Wells East will support artist development and training, and the creation of new work. It will build the infrastructure for dance and make it accessible to more people. Sadler’s Wells East will house a flexible theatre presenting a wide variety of dance performances. Community will be at the heart of Sadler’s Wells East with a large open foyer that can be used by everyone as a meeting or performance space. There will also be dance studios and world-class dance facilities for dancemakers to train, create and rehearse productions.

Supporting artists
Supporting artists is at the heart of our work. We have associate artists and companies, which nurture some of the most exciting talent working in dance today. We host the National Youth Dance Company, which draws together some of the brightest young dancers from across the country. Sadler’s Wells Breakin' Convention runs professional development programmes to champion and develop the world’s best hip hop artists, as well as producing, programming and touring groundbreaking hip hop performances.  

Learning and community links
Around 30,000 people take part in our learning and engagement programmes every year. We support schools local to our theatres in Islington and Stratford, designing experiences for children and young people to watch, explore and critically engage with the arts. We also run Company of Elders, a resident performance company of dancers aged over 60 who rehearse with renowned artists to make new work for public performances locally, nationally and internationally.  

Sadler’s Wells is an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation.  

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