Synonymous with the art world, Pablo Picasso’s works are easily some of the most recognisable. An artist credited as being an influential spearhead within the cubist movement, his art works are immediately what spring to mind at the mere mention of his name. Behind the scenes, it’s known that Picasso‘s love life was just as colourful, his marriages tainted by extra-marital affairs. Brian McAvera’s Picasso’s Women taps into this, giving the eccentric painter’s partners a voice to be heard. Produced by Flying Elephant Theatre, performer Colette Redgrave talks about taking on the role of ballet dancer and first wife to Picasso, Olga Khokhlova.

‘Three days, three cities, three theatres – Infinite ways to imagine the future of dance’ – This is the tagline that greets you when you visit Dansathon‘s website. Exciting in concept, the initiative sets out to push the performance genre of dance to a new level. Fusing the latest tech with some of the world’s most forward thinking dance practitioners and performance makers, innovations in how we perceive dance will be challenged. Dance Producer JiaXuan Hon tells us more about the forward thinking initiative!

This year marks two significant anniversarys; the first being the execution of the Romanov Family, the ruling family of Russia up until the February Revolution and Russian Revolution in 1918 – a century ago, and the 50th anniversary of the assasination of Martin Luther King Jr, one of the most influential figures within the Civil Rights Movement in the US. These two events would go on to make an impact on history thereafter, politically and socially. Nichola McAuliffe draws on these two significant historical events in her latest piece, Revenants – set 25 years prior to the latter event, and 25 years after the former. Read on to find out more about the show.

We now find ourselves living in a world whereby having an online presence can prove powerful. A single image or headline can travel the lengths and breadths of the world in a matter of minutes. Traditional news outlets perhaps not the first point of call when finding out the latest headlines, independent publications are now finding that their voices are proving very influential. Renowned for their exploration of timely topics through physical theatre and puppetry, Theatre Témoin return to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival to showcase their latest project, Feed, exploring this new digital world we find ourselves living in. Contributing playwright Eve Leigh tells us more about the company’s current piece.

London is renowned for its multi-culturalism, it’s an aspect of the city that makes it great. Immigration is an element of society that has had a great focus placed on it, and mainly for the wrong reasons. Director Katharina Reinthaller discusses directing Cecilia Gragnani’s Diary of an Expat, a show inspired by Cecilia’s own story of leaving Italy to pursue a new life in the UK. 

Celebrated for its boundary pushing line ups, the LIFT Festival brings to the capital some of the world’s most exciting theatrical works. Challenging theatre form, practitioners present ideas in ways that have audiences talking afterwards. East Wall contributes to this tradition, a large scale outdoor production situated in the Tower of London’s Moat. A project crafted by some of the UK’s leading choreographers – Hofesh Shechter, Becky Namgauds, Duwane Taylor, James Finnemore and Joseph Toonga, East Wall’s 150 strong East London Dance cast will no doubt draw the crowds. Krump specialist Duwane Taylor talks more about the creative process behind the show.

Curated by musician and theatre maker Kim ‘Busty Beatz’ Bowers and dance/theatre company co – founder and choreographer Lisa Fa’alafi, Hive City Legacy will boldly take over North London’s Roundhouse with a line up of 9 talented acts of colour. A female led line up, the evening’s aim is to create a ‘fierce and political homeage to London’. Acts range from circus artists to beatboxers, spoken word artists to cabaret performers – showing off the capital’s diverse talent. One of this year’s chosen acts; dancer, choreographer, photographer, videographer, and writer Shakaiah Perez tells us more about her varied career and what to expect from the evening.