“An absolute triumph.” – The Scotsman

Akram Khan’s Chotto Desh (‘small homeland’ in Bangladeshi) takes a storybook view of Khan’s childhood, growing up under the stern eye of his authoritarian father. Freely mixing Kathak dance with storytelling and mime, Khan creates a series of worlds that run from the ordinary to the mythic. While themes of exclusion and identity are wound throughout, the work is light on its feet and filled with a luminous humanity that grounds the fantastical in the universal.

Composer Jocelyn Pook and children’s theatre director Sue Buckmaster add richly embroidered detail to Khan’s lyrical and often deeply funny vignettes. From a surly teenager practicing Michael Jackson’s crotch-grabs in his bedroom to a man fully in control of his artistry and his destiny – Chotto Desh captures the complex relationship between parent and child, and the pain and joy of growing up with astounding delicacy and beauty.

“Fun and spontaneity are sprinkled across the show – young Khan’s refusal to sit on a child’s chair is a laugh-out-loud highlight. But all the while, and the final illustration of Khan’s choreographic development, there is acknowledgment of the deeper element at work, in the complex bonds between father and son.” – The Stage

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