A review of Motionhouse’s Hidden at the Warwick Arts Centre

Motionhouse premiered Hidden, their spectacular and unique show, this February at the Warwick Arts Centre. I had the privilege of attending this truly thought-provoking show on the February 6, and am so happy I did. Directed by Kevin Finnan, the production is touring the UK and Europe this year. There are a total of seven performers who use a wide range of artforms, including lifts and dance, to represent the importance of light within moments of darkness.  The soundtrack coincides with the abstract movement on stage to tell a story about the human experience in a complex world and society.

The cast were phenomenal, from their facial expressions to convey their emotions, to the thrilling choreography that they excelled at throughout the entire duration of the performance

From the moment I entered the theatre, I was surrounded by the anticipation of the audience, who ranged from all ages and backgrounds, which I feel reflects the importance of the message of the production to everyone. The darkness of both stage and seating contributed to the atmosphere of suspense, and allowed the small glimpses of light on the stage to be really effective.

The cast were phenomenal, from their facial expressions to convey their emotions, to the thrilling choreography that they excelled at throughout the entire duration of the performance. Despite no words being spoken throughout the performance, these movements and expression spoke to the audience more. According to Motionhouse, their vision was to “examine the human experience in the context of some of our shared challenges in an increasingly divided world”. They certainly achieved this. From the beginning, the backdrop projects movement through a busy underground, then a computer game and then switches to a home where the audience bear witness to a couple navigating their relationship. All of these projections serve as a physical representation of isolated individuals in a complex world.

The performance utilised an episodic structure, but all maintained the theme of relying on others for light and strength. The structure and the use of multimedia made each scene unique in its own way. At one point, the only light on stage was a beam carried by one cast member, which was followed by another member of the cast to reflect the importance of helping others. Another scene showed two members separately trapped by plastic wrapping and helping each other to escape. The ambiguous nature of some scenes allows the audience to interpret it in their own ways, which I personally really enjoyed. Despite the episodic nature of the scenes, the cast were able to effortlessly move on from each scene in a flowing way which kept the audience engaged.

The tension of these scenes was heightened by the soundtrack that perfectly encapsulated the feelings exerted from the scene to scene

Another element that contributed to the success of this production was the staging. The set was adaptable: at the beginning, there were two large metal frames that the cast could move around according to the scene they were displaying. They danced around them and, at points, physically on them. They had cloth on them so that the projections at the beginning could be displayed, and then once the cloth was removed, it worked as a prop that they could do incredible tricks on. Then, there was a total set change for the second act, which featured a ramp that the cast excellently balanced on. For this set change, the interval was thirty minutes so luckily at the Warwick Arts Centre, I was able to take a look at the Mead Gallery, but I would suggest keeping this break in mind when watching at other venues.

The tension of these scenes was heightened by the soundtrack that perfectly encapsulated the feelings exerted from the scene to scene. At moments of extremely risky lifts and catches, the music accurately provided the right beat and overall vibe of what was on stage.

I was massively impressed by this production as it was very unique and Motionhouse accurately achieved their mission to reflect individual challenges

The audience reaction was really telling of what a thought-provoking performance this was. Moments of complete silence followed episodes of applause after scenes or impressive movements. Moreover, I was enveloped in an atmosphere of suspense at specific moments, for example when one cast member was being caught by others, or when four cast members were balanced on top of each other, which made the success of these moves even more effective in showing the importance of coming together at times of crisis.

I was massively impressed by this production as it was very unique and Motionhouse accurately achieved their mission to reflect individual challenges. It left me inspired and thinking about some of the challenges they explored. If you haven’t already, I would recommend anyone and everyone to see this performance as I believe there is something for everyone to enjoy.