Southbank Centre – 6 November 2025
Reviewed by Claire Roderick
3***
Choreographer Sung Im Her’s powerful new work explores climate change and the ability of art to spark action. Young Uk Lee’s lighting design is inspired by the rising temperature of the earth – periods of darkness, stark white spotlights and cool blues complement Husk Husk and Lucy Duncan’s sound design – inspired by data collected from rising atmospheric temperatures. Mio Jue’s costume design is simple and effective: the dancers wearing loose tops and trousers in earth and water tones, with silver and red plastic flakes attached.
Her begins I silence, rolling onto the stage and then galloping around before 6 dancers walk on and perform twitching, disquieting sequences of movement as a haunting repeated melody plays. Each dancer moves alone, creating uneven waves of collapse and movement (trees, buildings, societies, ecosystems?) – either doggedly facing the ground or stealing brief frightened glances up at the sky. A steady beat begins and the movement becomes more co-ordinated as the dancers walk around the stage in co-ordinated groups moving in sequences like a fast, smooth marching band. As the beat builds, Her rejoins the group and the dancers begin to break out into joyful dancing, with this joy eventually spreading throughout the whole company. The show ends in darkness, with no music, just the sound of the dancers breathing, their shuffling feet and rustling costumes and a moment of calm collective reflection.
Her’s intricate tapestry of movement, light and music is sometimes puzzling but is an intriguing and hypnotic call to action.
#SungImHer #1DegreeCelsius #DaeGyuMoon #GyeongMiHwang #HyeonTaekOh #JiSooRyu #JunHongCho #JaeSungYu #YoungUkLee #HuskHusk #LucyDuncan #MioJue #SouthbankCentre #FairyPowered