Transform 23, an international performance festival, is making its return to the city this October 11 to 22. It will see artists from across the world collaborate with local talent to bring bold and thought-provoking performances to the city.
Creative director of Transform Amy Letman said: “Transform 23 is our most ambitious festival yet bringing extraordinary performance, dance, theatre, club culture and public encounters to Leeds.
“Years in the making, we’ve been scouring the world for the most daring productions to bring to the north of England, whilst cooking up major new collaborations with creatives from across Leeds and the globe. From intimate encounters to epic spectacles on big stages – audiences are invited to see the city differently and engage with powerful performances by trailblazing international artists.
“In this continued age of uncertainty, Transform 23 gives pause to ponder everything from community and loss to nature and personal odysseys – intrepid artists offer brave and heartfelt perspectives on how we might live differently together in the future.”
Transform 23 is a LEEDS 2023 production this year. Kully Thiarai, creative director and chief executive of LEEDS 2023, said: “We are absolutely delighted to be supporting Transform with its most impressive festival to date.
“The festival sits within the third and final part of our programme ‘Dreaming’ and we are thrilled to see and support so many brilliant international artists and companies bringing powerful and thought-provoking work to Leeds during our Year of Culture.
"We hope that the support LEEDS 2023 has been able to provide to Transform will ensure its long-term growth and development for this and many more years to come. It is a great example of how we have worked in partnership to welcome international artists and companies to connect and collaborate with our communities.”
1. One Song
A group of musicians will complete a workout whilst performing a single song, over and over in One Song. Belgian artist Miet Warlop and an ensemble of extraordinary performers invite us to witness this exhilarating physical struggle, grappling with themes of life and death, hope and rebirth, as well as the bodily realities of sweat, pain and exhaustion. It will take place on October 19 and 20, 7:30pm at Quarry Theatre, Leeds Playhouse. Photo: Michiel Devijver
2. DARKMATTER
In her new creation, Cherish Menzo and her onstage partner Camilo Mejía Cortés look for ways to detach their bodies from the way they are perceived and the daily reality in which they move. This dance performance incorporates the chopped and screwed method – a remix technique from hip-hop music in which the tempo is sharply reduced. By stretching the notions of time, the register changes and the performing body transcends into a different state. It will take place on October 14, 7.30pm at Main Theatre, Leeds School of Arts, Leeds Beckett University. Photo: Yaqine Hamzaoui and Yema Gieskes
3. Club Odyssey
An epic club experience for the finale of Transform 23. DJs and performers from Brazilian artist collective MEXA are joined by explosive acts from across Leeds and beyond. Expect myths, monsters and dancing. The show will take place on October 21, 10pm at CLAY: Centre for Live Art Yorkshire. Photo: Navid Fayaz
4. SOTTOBOSCO
A gentle and evocative dance performance created by choreographer Chiara Bersani ponders the politics of our access to nature. The show will take place on October 21, 4pm at Stanley and Audrey Burton Theatre. Photo: Giulia Agostini
5. Songs for no one
Theatre-maker Nastaran Razawi Khorasani shows a journey through the invisible stories of an Iranian boy and girl living under dictatorship, based on real life telephone conversations. Includes dialogues, poems and songs to reveal the lives and realities of those who are not often visible. It will take place on October 21, 2pm at Carriageworks Theatre. Photo: Julian Maiwald
6. Desire Marea
South African artist Desire Marea is hosting a communal and ceremonial concert bridging experimental music and operatic performance. The concert will take place on October 12 at 8pm at Left Bank Leeds. Photo: Tatenda Chidora