Inspired by Woyzeck with shadows of Frankenstein, English National Ballet’s production of Creature by Akram Khan is an unearthly tale of exploitation and human frontiers, set in a derelict former Arctic research station.

In a dilapidated former Arctic research station, the Creature has been conscripted by a military brigade into a bold new experimental programme. He is being tested for his mental and physical ability to adapt to extreme cold, isolation and homesickness; vital qualities in mankind’s proposed colonisation of the final frontiers, on earth and beyond. In humanity’s fight for survival, who will be left behind?

In Creature, choreographer Akram Khan immerses us in a future that is closer than we think, revealing an unearthly tale of exploitation and abandonment. His hypnotic choreography sees dancers glitching, flowing and marching to a compulsive score by Vincenzo Lamagna, which blends electronic sounds, speech and a live orchestra.

Inspired by Georg Büchner’s expressionist classic Woyzeck, with shadows of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Creature is a unique dance experience – visceral, absorbing, and earth-shaking.

Following the pivotal impact of Dust and Giselle, Creature is Akram Khan’s third collaboration with English National Ballet. The brilliant creative team is completed by Academy Award-winning designer Tim Yip, lighting designer Michael Hulls and dramaturg Ruth Little.

Read the Synopsis

[Image description] An uncanny human with bright blue skin is trapped behind a sheet of translucent ice or glass that glows in pink and orange swirls. He looks off to one side, his palm pressed against the wall.

A co-production between English National Ballet, Opera Ballet Vlaanderen (OBV) and Sadler’s Wells, London.
Production Sponsor: Cunard.

Header image © Jason Bell