Margaret Atwood’s MaddAddam trilogy, a post-apocalyptic story of life in the aftermath of a bio-engineered pandemic, might not have made the most obvious source material for a contemporary ballet. But after the Covid-19 pandemic, the series seemed unnervingly prescient. And this co-production between the Royal Ballet and the National Ballet of Canada, which had its European premiere at the Royal Opera House on 14 November, is a triumph. Directed and choreographed by Wayne McGregor, it is a futuristic cocktail of dance styles, aesthetics and musical scores that is true to the spirit of Atwood’s novels, and expands the boundaries of ballet as an art form.
The three acts of MaddAddam correspond to each of the three books in Atwood’s trilogy: Oryx and Crake (2003), The Year of the Flood (2009) and MaddAddam (2013). The first act begins in the dark, with an eerie explanation of the dystopian events delivered by a robotic and distorted child’s voice. A flood, designed by Lucy Carter, illuminates the dancers on stage. They move languidly against the minimalist backdrop, directly contrasting the riot footage, designed by Ravi Deepres, projected on a mesh screen in front of them. These projections are central to the second act, which creates the nostalgic atmosphere of an early computer game: the words “Mode: Survival” and “Player Extinct” flash in blocky green letters above the dancers.
The kaleidoscopic, newly commissioned score by Max Richter is orchestral, but not for long: it morphs into natural sounds, ambient landscapes and choral harmonisation as the performance progresses and the atmosphere becomes tenser. The costumes designed by Gareth Pugh are eclectic, varying from dusty pink utility boiler suits through gold metallic trench coats to nude morph suits. Under McGregor’s direction – which seamlessly intertwines classical, contemporary and modern dance sequences – MaddAddam is a strikingly relevant work for a post-pandemic age.
“MaddAddam” shows at the Royal Opera House until 30 November
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This article appears in the 20 Nov 2024 issue of the New Statesman, Combat Zone