The Place

Richard Alston’s contemporary classic Roughcut is danced to the cascading peals of Steve Reich’s shimmering New York and Electric Counterpoints for clarinet and guitar. It is a dance about vitality and as its name implies it does not bother to be tidy at the edges. But the throw-away energy of the movement is anchored by a very specific use of the body’s weight and pull, and this emphasis has to be there properly to articulate and syncopate the music’s intricate rhythm. Roughcut is a euphoric display of pure energy.

First performed by Richard Alston Dance Company at Cambridge Arts Theatre on 7 October 1999.