One of the strengths of Dance Me is that Leonard Cohen is never forgotten or set aside. Whether it’s Yosmell Calderon Mejias dressed in iconic Cohen coat and Fedora wandering through the entire production like a ghost, or his trademark ageing-Rottweiler vocal growl in voiceovers or indeed his words book-ending the show. Dance Me starts with the words of his Prayer for Messiah and ends with his spoken-word reprise of Treaty.
There is no doubting that Dance Me is a powerful, visually-imaginative production that packs a Wow Factor. Its bold staging can switch from wonderful intimacy to breathtaking spectacle. Cohen fans in the audience not only gave a warm ovation to the show, but were dancing in the aisles when the curtain came down.
While the entire troupe of dancers are undoubtedly skilled and talented, bursting with energy and stamina, the lack of variety within the choreography is the one demerit of the production. A one-style-fits-all homogeny fails to convey fully the soaring highs but also the darker, sombre lows of Cohen’s work.