New season of performance at Contact

Contact is pleased to announce its summer 2017 season of performance, events and projects with a strong international focus. The season, which runs from April to July 2017 promises to be a diverse and exciting programme for performance lovers of all ages.

Prime Cut Productions’ Scorch (Tuesday 23 – Friday 26 May) from Northern Ireland is inspired by recent real-life court cases and explores first love through the eyes of a gender-fluid young person in a hard-hitting but human drama. Award-winning comedian and Contact supported artist Sophie Willan returns after huge success in 2016 with a brand new Contact-commissioned show Wild (Wednesday 28 June – Saturday 1 July) about growing up in care.

This summer, Contact will present a wide range of dance performance, beginning with Word of Warning and Contact’s annual micro-festival TURN (Friday 28 April) which showcases the latest new Northern dance talent in one eclectic whirlwind night. Another highlight of the dance season is the stunning Leviathan by James Wilton Dance (Tuesday 16 & Wednesday 17 May). This blend of athletic dance, martial arts and capoeira will see a cast of seven reimagine Herman Melville’s Moby Dick in a breath-taking performance.

Following the acclaimed Christmas show The Siege of Christmas, Contact continues to present unique family shows in unusual spaces. This season sees UK/Scandinavian company New International Encounter present We Come from Far Far Away (Wednesday 31 May – Friday 2 June) in a massive Mongolian yurt. The production for children aged 10 years and over tells the story of refugees through the difficult and amazing journey of two young boys from Aleppo.

For radical performance lovers, Anglo-Belgian production company Reckless Sleepers present their classic Schrödinger (Wednesday 24 & Thursday 25 May) with its themes of truth and chaos having a particular relevance in the current political climate. This summer, the brilliant Action Hero will work with Contact Young Company on a new show, 15 Minutes (Wednesday 26 – Saturday 29 July). Inspired by Andy Warhol 15 Minutes will use live performance, video and sound to explore the world of pop art and cultural icons.

Finally, Contact is delighted to rekindle its relationship with Manchester International Festival, hosting an important residency for dance makers led by New York sensation FlexN, a.k.a Reggie ‘Regg Roc’ Gray (Monday 3 – Tuesday 11 July). During his time at Contact, Reggie will be introducing a group of dancers to the FlexN dance style, working with local spoken word collective Young Identity to explore new ways of telling stories through words and movement.

Matt Fenton, Artistic Director at Contact said:

We are thrilled to be able to present such a wide-ranging, international and diverse selection of work at Contact this summer, covering issues from gender identity to the struggles facing young refugees. At Contact we engage with issues that directly affect our communities, young people and audiences, brought to life by world-class artists in exciting, thought-provoking and always entertaining ways.

Contact’s summer 2017 season are now on sale from Monday 27 March in person, by phone on 0161 274 0600 or online via the link below.

Published: 30-Mar-2017: (4201)