Vertical Road

»More and more, I am pulled reluctantly towards a strong horizontal current, which is a place where time is moving at such high velocity, that even our breath is forced to accelerate just in order for us humans to survive. And I have always believed, that it is in our slow exhalation, where the sense of this deep spiritual energy resides. In a world moving so fast, with the growth of technology and information, I am somehow inclined to move against this current, in search of what it might mean to be connected not just spiritually, but also vertically.« / Akram Khan

Vertical Road is Akram Khan's latest contemporary ensemble work, and continues his ambition to explore the interface between different cultures and creative disciplines. Khan has assembled a cast of very special performers from across Asia, Europe and the Middle East. With a specially commissioned score by long-term collaborator composer, Nitin Sawhney, Vertical Road draws inspiration from universal myths of angels that symbolise ›ascension‹. The road between the earthly and the spiritual - the vertical road.

Balancing a carefully crafted structure and innovative lighting, this production has a richly diverse quality, played out through each performer's different cultural interpretation of the human odyssey. Vertical Road aims to create both a visually inspiring and spiritually profound experience.

Sponsored by COLAS
A co-production of the Akram Khan Company with ADACH (Abu Dhabi, Authority for Culture and Heritage), Sadler's Wells London,
Curve Theatre Leicester, Theatre de la Ville Paris, National Arts Centre Ottawa, Mercat de les Flors Barcelona. Supported by Dancecast UK.
Produced during residencies at Curve, Leicester and DanceEast, Ipswich
Supported by Arts Council England.