Press Release: Wayne McGregor presents two works at Sadler's Wells this March

[Jan McNulty]

Company Wayne McGregor  Autobiography (v95 and v96)   Performances: Tuesday 12 & Wednesday 13 March 2024  &  UniVerse: A Dark Crystal Odyssey  Performances: Friday 15 & Saturday 16 March 2024  Tickets from £15  Ticket Office: 020 7863 8000 or www.sadlerswells.com       Company Wayne McGregor returns to Sadler's Wells Theatre this March with two works from Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist and visionary choreographer Wayne McGregor CBE. His company performs Autobiography (v95 and v96) on 12 & 13 March and UniVerse: A Dark Crystal Odyssey on 15 & 16 March. Autobiography (v95 and v96) © Andrej Uspenski Innovative technology and revolutionary choreography bring to life two works by choreographer and director Wayne McGregor, performed by Company Wayne McGregor. Throughout his career, Wayne McGregor has made choreography that interrogates life through the experience of the body in its multifaceted relationship with technology. In 2017, McGregor turned his attention to the ‘body as archive’ with Autobiography (1.0), the first in a developing series of unique dance portraits inspired and determined by the sequencing of his own genetic code. Layering choreographic imprints over personal memoir and in dialogue with a specially created algorithm that hijacks McGregor’s DNA data, Autobiography upends the traditional nature of dance-making as artificial intelligence and instinct converge in creative authorship. In the most recent iteration of Wayne McGregor's Autobiography (v95 and v96), genetic code, AI and choreography merge in a work that re-imagines and remakes itself anew for every performance. AISOMA - a new AI tool developed with Google Arts and Culture utilising machine-learning trained on 100s of hours of McGregor’s choreographic archive - overwrites the configurations of its initial state to present fresh movement options to the performers. With original music by Jlin, set design and projection by Ben Cullen Williams, lighting design by Lucy Carter, costume design by Aitor Throup, dramaturgy by Uzma Hameed and algorithm design by Nick Rothwell. UniVerse: A Dark Crystal Odyssey © Andrej Uspenski Wayne McGregor’s UniVerse: A Dark Crystal Odyssey, reimagines Jim Henson’s cult 1982 film The Dark Crystal - a darkly fantastical epic with mythological underpinnings and ecological overtones - as a potent tale for today in its depiction of an earth in peril, torn apart by extremes and in desperate need of healing. Performed by the startling dancers of Company Wayne McGregor. Director and choreographer Wayne McGregor leads a team of world-class creatives, including composer Joel Cadbury, film designer Ravi Deepres, lighting designer Lucy Carter, dramaturg Uzma Hameed, costume designer Philip Delamore, face-and body-artist Alex Box and spoken word artist Isaiah Hull.  This electrifying collaboration explores themes of nature, exploitation, courage and rescue in an epic adventure through an unsettling world, in the context of our own ailing planet. While fans of the film may recognise the shadow of characters and situations, they are glimpsed through the maelstrom of our contemporary world with its magical characters and environments, and its depiction of the darknesses that lurk within the human psyche.  UniVerse: A Dark Crystal Odyssey, taps into an innate, deep-held knowledge of good and evil, as well as an umbilical connection to the natural world. A modern myth of ecological urgency, McGregor examines how we can come together to be whole again.  Born in 1970, Wayne McGregor CBE is a multi-award-winning British choreographer and director, internationally renowned for trailblazing innovations in performance that have radically redefined dance in the modern era. He is regularly commissioned by and has works in the repertories of the most important dance companies in the world, including Paris Opera Ballet, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, New York City Ballet, Bolshoi Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet and Australian Ballet. He is in demand as a choreographer for theatre, opera, film, music videos, fashion shows and TV. More recently, McGregor presented Untitled 2023, his latest work for The Royal Ballet. ABBA Voyage, the revolutionary concert that launched the Swedish pop sensations back onstage in an outstanding avatar performance in 2022, choreographed by McGregor, continues into 2024. In November 2024, McGregor brings Margaret Atwood’s post-apocalyptic vision to the stage in the three-act ballet MADDADDAM based on the writer’s acclaimed trilogy of novels: 'Oryx and Crake', 'The Year of the Flood' and 'MaddAddam' to The Royal Opera House.     Notes to Editors  Autobiography (v95 and v96)    Produced by Studio Wayne McGregor.  Co-produced by Sadler’s Wells, London, UK; Les Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg; Edinburgh International Festival, UK; Festspielhaus St Pölten, Austria; Carolina Performing Arts at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA; Movimentos Festwochen der Autostadt in Wolfsburg, Germany.      The original production of Autobiography was co-produced by Sadler’s Wells  Co-commissioned by West Kowloon Cultural District, Hong Kong; Festival Diaghilev. P.S., St Petersburg, Russia; Centro Cultural Vila Flor, Guimarães, Portugal; Seattle Theatre Group, USA (music); Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, London, UK.   Music by Jlin in partnership with Unsound     Wayne McGregor is a Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist and Company Wayne McGregor is Resident Company at Sadler's Wells    Supported by The Monument Trust, in partnership with Wellcome Genomics Campus, Wellcome Sanger Institute and the European Bioinformatics Institute.  Kindly supported by Brenda Leff    UniVerse: A Dark Crystal Odyssey  A co-production between Studio Wayne McGregor and The Royal Ballet in association with The Jim Henson Company.      About Company Wayne McGregor  Multi-award winning choreographer and director Wayne McGregor CBE founded his own company in 1993 as a creative engine for his pioneering projects and his life-long choreographic enquiry into thinking through and with the body. Company Wayne McGregor remains the crucible of his creative energy, where his most experimental work is realised.    Company Wayne McGregor is Resident Company at Sadler’s Wells, London. With over 30 works created by McGregor, the company has toured to more than 50 countries, visiting some of the world’s most prestigious theatres, as well as creating site specific performances at the Venice Biennale Danza, Frieze London, Roundhouse, Barbican Curve, Secret Cinema, and performing at The Brits, New York and London Fashion Week and the BBC Proms.    Company Wayne McGregor sits within Studio Wayne McGregor, the organization which supports the breadth of McGregor’s artistic collaborations in dance, visual arts, film, theatre, opera, fashion and music video; a portfolio of international commissions; highly specialized creative learning programmes for individuals and communities; artist development initiatives; and collaborative research projects across the interface of the arts with science, technology and academic research.    About Wayne McGregor  Wayne McGregor CBE is internationally renowned for his trailblazing innovations in performance that have radically redefined dance in the modern era. McGregor’s multi-dimensional works resulting from interactions with an array of artistic forms, scientific disciplines, and technological interventions have ensured his position at the cutting edge of contemporary arts for over 3 decades.    He is Artistic Director of Studio Wayne McGregor, encompassing creative collaborations in dance, film, music, visual art, technology, and science; learning and research programmes; and a touring company of dancers Company Wayne McGregor, the first resident company at Sadler’s Wells which celebrated its 30-year anniversary in 2023.   McGregor is also Resident Choreographer at The Royal Ballet, Director of Dance for the Venice Biennale, and is regularly commissioned by and has works in the repertories of the most important dance companies around the world including Paris Opera Ballet, La Scala, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, New York City Ballet, Bolshoi Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet and Australian Ballet.    He is in demand as a choreographer for theatre (Old Vic, National Theatre, Royal Court, Donmar), opera (La Scala/Royal Opera, ENO), film (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, The Legend of Tarzan, Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, 1, 2, 3 Sing, Mary Queen of Scots), and music videos (Radiohead, The Chemical Brothers). McGregor choreographed the highly anticipated ABBA Voyage concert which premiered in London in May 2022.    McGregor is Professor of Choreography at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance.  McGregor’s work has earned him Four Critics’ Circle Awards, two Time Out Awards, two South Bank Show Awards and two Olivier awards. In January 2011 McGregor was awarded a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) for Services to Dance, and in 2021 was honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Prix de Lausanne.      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.      www.sadlerswells.com      Stay up to date with everything Sadler’s Wells on social media       Facebook: @SadlersWells       Twitter: @Sadlers_Wells       Instagram: @sadlers_wells       YouTube: Sadler’s Wells Theatre