Icarus: a Story of Flight

The Icarus myth is given a happy ending postscript in this fairytale piece from physical theatre and aerial circus company Backhand Theatre.

We join the famous waxen-winged one just after his fall when, after tumbling into the ocean, he is rescued by a recluse called Guy who has been stranded for years on a desert island. Guy recounts his story to Icarus and tells him of his own desire to learn how to fly so he can reunite with his long-lost family. Meanwhile, Icarus finds another reason to take up wings again when he falls in love with a fallen star. And so their quest to the land of the firebird begins, through forests and mountains, all beautifully imagined in an ice-white set of stencilled shapes that suggest water, fire and curling branches.

There is little to fault about this show but in many ways it falls short of becoming anything more than a sweet little tale. The fragile plot seems only to act as a facilitator for some graceful aerial set pieces. But even these are all too brief and fleeting. Lewis Davidson and Hattie Gregory create an arresting duo on static trapeze when they first meet, their silvery bodies entwining against the backdrop of a pale sun.

If only they, like Icarus, had stayed a little longer in the air.