Ashley Shaw was amazing in the Red Shoes, with gorgeous techniques and a potent personality that wooed the audience.
I’ve seen snippets of Matthew Bourne’s work online, but it’s a whole difference experience to watch two hours of dance theatre. I especially enjoyed how he created several highly detailed scenes without any spoken words. For example, Lady Neston’s Soiree (portraying boredom and dullness in a theatrical way).
The show has some nifty fusion of social and concert dance — combining “real world” swing and jazz-era movements with the beautiful lines of concert jazz dances.