Ballet Theatre Munich
By Debra Craine for The Times


FOR almost seven years, the Englishman Philip Taylor has been running the German dance troupe now known as Ballet Theatre Munich. You would expect that Taylor, as a one-time member of London Contemporary Dance Theatre, would be interested in the theatrical possibilities of contemporary dance. And he is. Certainly the choreography showcased in his company’s Brighton Festival appearance tries to bring imagery and ideas to the fore. Too often, though, it tries too hard. Or maybe not hard enough.
Cayetano Soto’s idea is to reflect the phases of the Moon in his Plenilunio, an economical work for six black-clad dancers which feels bigger, thanks to Soto’s buoyant use of his ensemble. As it turns out, this was the strongest dance on show at the Corn Exchange on Friday night.

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Ballet Theatre Munich
By Judith Mackrell for The Guardian


Caught in the slipstream of festivals such as Edinburgh and Dance Umbrella, it is hard for Brighton to spring any real surprises in its dance programme. This year's showing of Ballet Theatre Munich, however, has been an exclusive. Revamped in 1998 under the direction of British choreographer Philip Taylor, the company, with its hugely appealing dancers (and its less appealingly symbol-laden repertory), has never been seen in the UK before.

At the Corn Exchange, the most accomplished new work on show was Cayetano Soto's Plenilunio - though it would have been better served without the programme note explaining the influence of the moon on Soto's choreographic structure.

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Ballet Theatre Munich, Brighton Corn Exchange, 23 May

Both Judith Mackrell and Debra Craine were rather dismissive of Ballet Theatre Munich’s recent performance in Brighton. I’d have to say that they were worth a more enthusiastic review.

Ballet Theatre Munich are a supremely stylish company. Vibrant and versatile, they have the precision and agility of ballet dancers with none of the affected poise. They are schooled to technical perfection but bring their personalities to the stage too. They are easy on the eye without being trite or insubstantial.

As everyone agreed, Cayetano Soto’s ‘Plenilunio’ showed off their strengths magnificently, and won the audience over immediately with its elegant loops and rotations, and duets that appeared to be simultaneously tranquil and frenetic.

The other works may not have been quite so complete but each peered into a different world and there was always something to see. Jennifer Hanna’s ‘Torn Stone and Hiccup’ was an odd but enchanting fairytale peopled with playful Pucks and puzzled princesses. Dylan Newcomb’s ‘Passing’ took us deep into the matter of the body with near-naked dancer Alan Brooks looking like he was wired up to electric pulses. Jane Dudley’s ‘Harmonica Breakdown’ was four-minutes of a demented but determined blues. And Philip Taylor’s Junction was exhilarating in its momentum and fizzing characters.

The dancers always seem to be aware of something bigger than their steps, as if there’s an ‘outside’ to their work. We don’t necessarily know what that is, but it’s definitely a starting point for the imagination. They have grace and depth and while there was room for the choreography to explore further there was an underlying joy in simply dancing which is always irresistible.

Ballet Theatre Munich, Corn Exchange, Brighton
By Nadine Meisner for The Independent

Ballet Theatre Munich may be small, but it is the antithesis of the choreographer-led company that has such dominance here. On the contrary, its director Philip Taylor makes it part of his credo that his should not be the only choreographic voice.

As a result, the company's second programme for the Brighton Festival contained pieces by four other choreographers besides Taylor. The shortest item - Jane Dudley's Harmonica Breakdown - was the only familiar one. A powerful solo, it encapsulates in four minutes a life of suffering and resilience, performed with emotional clarity by the company's Christine Bombosch.

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Review from The Observer.

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