Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Cast: Laura Edwards, Shannon Walbrooke, Emilie Lahouel.

History recalls how the strength of women has been viewed by those with weak minds and suspect agendas, throughout time a woman’s sexuality, her power has been used against her to the point where the most base of accusations have held sway and in the minds of public opinion have condemned her to be branded many names, not least one that holds emotive historical value, that of a witch.

The Crucible in which various women were tried and accused of Witchcraft has always been nestling in the darkness of human existence, the label used as a catch all against anything that others, mostly men, do not understand, and whilst we are no longer in a period in which King James’ The Malleus Maleficarum holds any scientific or human relevance, in which a woman is absurdly condemned for having a greater sense of insight into the world and which makes certain men of power scared, terrified of losing control, it still remains a label used by children to demean and to scare and by men to belittle and blame.

To tackle such preconceptions in a time when such notions are absurd, Meraki Collective’s wonderfully produced presentation of dance and discipline for this year’s Physical Fest at the Unity Theatre, Kill A Witch Or Die Trying, is still hugely relevant, a fascinating exploration through the command of the natural, the alluring and the instinct which embodies free flowing reason and the ability to provide insight into how movement defies rigid practises.

To be filled with grace and the generous ability to exercise a sense of brute force, to conjure through the gaze of the spotlight a form of expression in which the audience is at all times captivated, open to interpretation but also at times honing in on the sense of possible personal destruction as if lured by a siren to be dashed upon the rocks of supposed love, of damnation and spells.

Kill A Witch Or Die Trying may be a work in process but it is one that is intuitive, its reflexes taut and conscious of the enchantment being weaved. A terrifically shattering experience which you cannot but hope goes on forever; a truly inspiring piece of physical theatre by the Meraki Collective.

Ian D. Hall