R.O.S.E.
Sadler’s Wells East
★★★★★
“There’s an intimacy to the experience that’s both electrifying and disarming”
R.O.S.E. is a magnificent performance that’s hard to put into words. It defies easy explanation as everything in this show is so meticulously crafted, yet it flows with such raw, visceral energy that you feel more than you understand. It’s not just a dance performance; it’s a total sensory experience where music, movement, light, and presence come together in perfect harmony.
Choreographers Sharon Eyal and her long time creative partner Gai Behar have created something truly distinctive. Their vision for R.O.S.E. pushes the boundaries of contemporary dance, blending club culture, performance art, and avant-garde aesthetics into one hypnotic and unforgettable experience.
From the moment you enter the space, you’re no longer just an audience member, you’re a participant. The ambient, pulsing soundscape by DJ Call Super envelops you immediately, dissolving the edges of the room and transporting you to an otherworldly dimension. For a moment, it feels like being inside a dreamlike nightclub, rhythmic, immersive, and full of anticipation. You find yourself swaying, moving, waiting for something to shift.
And then it does.
The dancers emerge quietly, slipping through the crowd like phantoms. At first, you hardly notice them, then suddenly, you’re transfixed. Their presence is magnetic. Moving with ghostlike precision and supernatural control, they draw you into their world. The line between performer and observer blurs, and you become part of the choreography, part of the ritual.
You’ve likely never been this close to a dancer before. There’s an intimacy to the experience that’s both electrifying and disarming. Everyone in the room seems to fall under the same spell, united by a shared energy, a silent understanding. The performance unfolds like a collective trance: dark and intense, futuristic and androgynous, filled with repetitive, mesmerizing movements and astonishing physical discipline.
The lighting design (Alon Cohen) enhances the mood with extraordinary precision, fluctuating between shadowy minimalism and sudden, strobe-lit intensity. Haze and fog creep across the space, creating a dreamlike, almost cinematic texture to the air.
The costumes, created by Dior’s Maria Grazia Chiuri, are a perfect extension of the dancers’ bodies. Skin-tight, sculptural, and subtly fluid, they seem to breathe and move with every flex of muscle and turn of the body. They aren’t just outfits, they’re part of the performance itself.
R.O.S.E. is a must-see for anyone willing to surrender to a different kind of night out, one that challenges the senses, dissolves boundaries, and redefines what live performance can be. If you’re curious about the future of contemporary dance or crave something raw, elegant, and utterly captivating, this is the show to experience.
R.O.S.E.
Sadler’s Wells East
Reviewed on 10th July 2025
by Beatrice Morandi
Photography by Johan Persson
Last ten shows reviewed at Sadler’s Wells venues:
QUADROPHENIA, A MOD BALLET | ★★★★★ | SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE | June 2025
INSIDE GIOVANNI’S ROOM | ★★★★★ | SADLER’S WELLS EAST | June 2025
ALICE | ★★★★ | SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE | May 2025
BAT OUT OF HELL THE MUSICAL | ★★★★ | PEACOCK THEATRE | May 2025
SPECKY CLARK | ★★★ | SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE | May 2025
SNOW WHITE: THE SACRIFICE | ★★★★★ | SADLER’S WELLS EAST | April 2025
SKATEPARK | ★★★★ | SADLER’S WELLS EAST | April 2025
MIDNIGHT DANCER | ★★★★ | PEACOCK THEATRE | March 2025
THE DREAM | ★★★★★ | PEACOCK THEATRE | March 2025
DEEPSTARIA | ★★★★ | SADLER’S WELLS THEATRE | February 2025
