James Cousins Company
We Are As Gods
An explosive celebration of life and dance in the rooms, rooftops and secret stairways of Battersea Arts Centre
Wednesday 6 October to Sunday 10 October
Weds-Sat 7.30pm to 10pm followed by After Party
Sun 5pm to 7.30pm followed by After Party
This October choreographer James Cousins invites audiences to immerse themselves in an electric club atmosphere at Battersea Arts Centre. A diverse cast of 70, featuring some of the UK’s most exciting dance talent, will perform powerful group dances and intimate duets in the iconic venue’s maze of quirky spaces.
300 event goers can design their own night, starting their journey at one of the building’s four entrances, moving through its maze of spaces alone or with friends, buying local food and drink and enjoying panoramic views of London from the rooftop. Experiencing moments of darkness, pulsing light and bursts of sound, they will encounter the performances, choosing to stop and watch or to move on to find more. When the show finishes, an After Party with a DJ in the spectacular Grand Hall allows people to rediscover the joy of moving together – in arguably the dance event of the year.
The soundtrack to the evening is created by two of Cousins’ frequent collaborators – poet Sabrina Mahfouz and music producer and composer Torben Lars Sylvest who will be collaborating with sound designer Pär Carlsson. Sylvest and Carlsson will fill the space with music drawing on influences from classical to grime, weaving in new compositions with instantly-recognisable tunes. Mahfouz’s spoken text which draws on themes of human connection and the responsibility to rebuild our world better will resonate through the building.
We Are As Gods is James Cousins Company’s first large-scale immersive show. It combines extracts from three acclaimed productions – Rosalind, Epilogues and Without Stars – with new choreography created especially for this event. Cousins is working with emerging creative voice Alethia Antonia on We Are As Gods. Antonia will collaborate with Cousins on the choreography and on the development of the show alongside longtime company member Gareth Mole.
The piece is performed by ten dancers from James Cousins Company, over 30 third-year students from London Contemporary Dance School and dancers from Wandsworth-based community groups of children and older people.
Creating the work, Cousins has been inspired by the renewed connection to nature that the lockdowns of the past year have allowed us – at a time when the realities of the global climate crisis confront us daily. The title nods to the famous quote from the influential environmentalist Stewart Brand ‘We are as gods and might as well get good at it’.
Listings information
James Cousins Company
We Are As Gods
Battersea Arts Centre, Lavender Hill; London SW11 5TN
Wednesday 6 October to Sunday 10 October
Weds-Sat 7.30pm to 10pm followed by after-party
Sun 5pm to 7.30pm followed by after-party
Wednesday 6 October will be a socially-distanced performance (see below)
All performances will be relaxed.
Tickets: Pay What You Can (suggested price £25)
Box office: 020 7223 2223 / www.bac.org.uk
