In Palestine, dabke is a dance often enjoyed at weddings and other big celebrations. It is a cross between a circle dance and line dancing, with people joining with arms around each other and kicking out their legs. It is something all cultures can...
For those quick to label Manchester International Festival as elitist, point them towards FlexN Manchester. In recent years Britain’s Got Talent has revealed a huge appetite for street dance in popular culture, and this show is a fantastic...
Manchester International Festival makes a fantastic cultural contribution to the city in commissioning events that bring together top talent from across the globe. But, sometimes it is good to be reminded of the extraordinary talent we have right...
The emerging urban gang culture of Victorian Manchester is a gift for dramatists who are only really beginning to scratch the surface of these complex and fractured lives. Last year, HOME staged the immersive and challenging, Angel Meadow, on the...
There’s something for everyone at The Lowry this Christmas, and for little ones the show of choice is We’re Going on a Bear Hunt. My two-year-old nephew had spotted the posters, and although it wasn’t a story I was familiar with, he recognised it...
If there’s one thing you can be sure of about the star of Snow White – Priscilla Presley is not in it for the money. She returns to her role as the Wicked Queen, after making her panto debut in Wimbeldon last year, seemingly for the joy of it, and...
Although a performer for almost 20 years, Theo Clinkard’s dance company is relatively new on the contemporary dance scene. A resident artist at Greenwich Dance and an associate artist at Dance4, Clinkard established his own company in 2012, and Of...
Following the success of World War I drama The Accrington Pals last year, it’s good to see director James Dacre return to the Royal Exchange, this time with his equally immersive interpretation of a classic play, Tennessee Williams’ Pulitzer prize...
Stomp has come a long way since its 1991 premiere at the Edinburgh Festival. More than 20 years on, the show, created by Luke Cresswell and Steve McNicholas, has become a global success and its popularity doesn’t show any signs of slowing. Part of...
There is something very worthy about the latest new play from the Developed with the Lowry programme that makes me want to warm to it much more than I can. The writer, Tuheen Huda is also a practising hospital doctor, working in intensive care, and...
Carmel Thomason