Marc Brew's Boys Don't Dance Plays Edinburgh
Get the Culture newsletter
Daily culture — film, music, books, the trends and ideas worth your attention. Free.
- Marc Brew created "Boys Don't Dance," his latest autobiographical piece, returning to themes he explored in his 2024 acclaimed show "An Accident/A Life," made with choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui about the car accident that left him paralysed below the waist aged 20.
- Ross Malloy plays the young Marc, growing up in rural Australia among football fans and sheep and told repeatedly that "boys don't dance," while conveying the character's innate joy through Footloose routines and 80s pop nostalgia.
- Champion wheelchair Latin dancer Piotr Iwanicki plays the grownup Brew remembering and reconciling with his past, with the review noting that Iwanicki and Malloy "find some synergy and inventive moves together."
- The soundtrack draws on Culture Club, Wham!, cartoon pop star Jem, the Wonder Woman theme, and Gillette jingles, backed by a mix of disco, jazz, acro-moves and BMX tricks.
- Video designer Jamie Wardrop created an animated line-drawing backdrop that shifts from monochrome to neon as Brew finds his real freedom in the big city.
- The show was created for ages 8 to 13 and runs at Assembly @ Dance Base, Edinburgh, until 23 August.
Why it matters: Brew's piece gives 8-to-13-year-olds a warm, accessible story about pursuing dance in a rural environment hostile to that ambition, with the critic noting the show captures how the young protagonist's desire is "torturing him" as he hides his true self. The casting of champion wheelchair Latin dancer Iwanicki as the adult Brew grounds the autobiographical arc in lived experience of disability, while the 80s pop soundtrack positions the show as a nostalgic hit for parents attending with the kids it's actually made for.
Ask SkimNews
