Uncharted Waters

The wayward charm of running away to sea is beautifully captured by aerial dance and roguish shanties, in this three-part collaboration between Strange Bird Zirkus and All or Nothing.

Lucy Deacon and Jennifer Paterson lure us in with their parallels between sailors and circus acrobats, hoisting the rigging, shimmying up the Chinese pole and lolling at the top as if it’s a crow’s nest, wrapping themselves up in sails and soaring weightlessly like seagulls circling. There’s a free energy to this first part, full of playful camaraderie, but before long sickness creeps in and brutal storms are whipped up.

Part two is a darker, more tender tale, where Moritz Linkmann’s lonesome sailor enters a port bordello to play upon his fantasies. His painful, passionate tango on the Chinese pole is an absolute show-stealer, but what makes this whole piece so special is the perfect marriage of circus skills with story. In a final solo Jennifer Paterson plays wild games upon a rope like a tangled mermaid caught on an anchor.

If anything could make you dream of stowing away, it’s definitely this.

Dance Base, 225 5525, until 20 Aug (not 8–12, 15–17), 9pm, £10 (£8).