Until the Lions ★★★★★ The Observer review

Akram Khan made Until the Lions to be performed in the magical, circular space of London’s Roundhouse some three years ago. It shone then, and after worldwide success in different arenas has returned home to cast its illuminating spell for a final time. Strikingly beautiful, poised somewhere between narrative and metaphor, it features only three dancers – Ching-Ying Chien, Joy Alpuerto Ritter and Khan himself – but is epic in conception, a myth transfigured for modern times.

Seeing it now, you realise how much it is a transitional work, carrying Khan from the intricate solos and duets that made his name to the larger-scale vision of works such as Giselle for English National Ballet, which emphasises his choreographic importance in a future where he plans to dance less. It looks forward and back, containing both echoes of Khan’s earliest experience as a performer for Peter Brook and the first stirrings of his collaboration with the composer Vincenzo Lamagna, who provides the resonant, evocative score.

To read the rest of Sarah Crompton’s review, click here.