Now is made up of moments from Jasmin Vardimon Company’s repertoire and is a celebration of the Company’s 25th Anniversary. These moments segue into a cohesive whole through recurrent themes and imagery. As a whole, the piece is visually arresting, thought-provoking and never predictable.

In the opening sequence, white flags are held by expressionless dancers. As dry ice rises, spotlights highlight the dancers, and the whiteness is brilliant. Then the dancers are gagged, their flags are seized and weaponised by others. Behind are digital images of protestors, whilst the soundtrack speaks of protest.

Later, the flags return, this time against projections of electricity pylons and barbed wire. The dance is mechanistic with undertones of warfare. This theme is echoed later through use of the spoken word as two dancers question the future of the world at a time of war, technological developments and climate change. At a point where a dancer captures outbreaks of violence on her phone, questions seem to be asked as to whether we have lost our sense of humanity.

In other sequences, in remarkably creative choreography, a rope is used. Lying on the floor, dancers move along its length using props such as brooms and balloons. Captured by an overhead camera and using back projection, they become acrobats on a tight rope, jostling with one another. As they try to balance, no one is secure. But their ascent upwards, leaving the rope behind, communicates confidence and reassurance against the odds.

Once again, the rope returns later in the piece, this time its shape on the floor becoming a stairway. Letters that spell out ‘Happiness’ have an arrow pointing upwards. As dancers climb the stairs, another turns the arrow in the opposite direction.

Some moments are of a lighter mood, as the dancers become cartoonish and playful. In others, we are observers of different types of relationships – from the loving, to the trapped, to the hostile.

The use of colour is visually striking. White runs throughout, whether used for flags or for carpeting the stage with feathers. In contrast, some costumes are blood red, as is the backdrop at times. The presence of black, particularly through the absence of light other than on the performers, contrasts sharply with the red and white.

The piece is accompanied by a richly evocative soundtrack which moves from heavy beats to extracts from Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons. Endlessly inventive, Now is an extraordinary piece, and Jasmin Vardimon is a company worth looking out for.

The dancers were: Donny Beau-Ferris, Evelyn Hart, Eri Magkou, Risa Maki, Sean Moss, Hobie Schouppe and Thomas Kerek. Now is part of This is Dance, an international season of dance in Birmingham presented in partnership with FABRIC, Birmingham Hippodrome, Birmingham Rep, Fierce Festival, Midlands Arts Centre and Sampad Arts. It is on at MAC until 25th October.