Anyone with an interest in modern dance should hustle on down to BATS theatre to catch this production. It’s articulate, polished, thoughtful, often beautiful and always intriguing; challenging the imagination while pleasing the eye.

Co-director / dramaturge Charles Sanders’ notes tell us that Fear of Eggs explores the joy and nostalgia of looking back at childhood and examining how it shapes bodies and minds. This is a broad brief which the production feels free to interpret loosely. The dancers give us a series of sustained images which suggest aspects of human relationships: friendship, childhood, family, sexuality, nostalgia, the limitations of communication. These images, or passages, are linked together in a loose narrative arc which gives the show a nice sense of shape and purpose.

Not everything we see on stage lends itself easily to labelling and defining. This is probably as it should be and dovetails neatly with the directors’ intentions. Charles Sanders’ notes invite us to approach the show in a spirit of open imagination, relating its content to our own memories and experiences. 

The show makes good use of what, for the venue, is a large company of dancers. Eleven dancers on stage in BATS’ Heyday Dome can – and do – create an impressive visual impact. The show’s most satisfying moments are those where the company is working together to create a dynamic collective image, whether it’s of chaotic movement, parodic glee, or stately pageant.

There are also moments when there’s so much going on that the audience doesn’t know which part of the stage to watch – maybe a deliberate metaphor for how we perceive reality?  

Not all the highlights feature the whole company. One of the show’s outstanding passages is a long, sensual, Laocoönian duet which twines across the stage like a pair of loving snakes.

Fear of Eggs has a strong company who overall demonstrate a high level of commitment and skill. They are often required to act out extremes of emotion as well as dance; the results achieved are a credit to the individual dancers and their choreographer, Eliza Sanders.

The show is well supported by its visual display and lighting (Owen McCarthy), costumes (Monique Bartosh) and choice of music – everything from Mozart to Skeeter Davis. 

We didn’t see House of Sand’s previous Fringe shows – Pedal.Peddle (2015) and Castles (2016) – so can’t compare, but their offering this year stands out as a combination of successful conception and execution. 

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