Soft God – Dublin Dance Festival – Review

Soft God – Emma Martin – Abbey Theatre 
Dates – Thu 14—Sat 16 May 2026

As the audience takes their seats, one of the dancers, Jessie Thompson, is already on stage. Seated on a chair and looking decidedly bored. She appears almost to be waiting for the performance to begin herself. At one point, she opens a packet of crisps and casually eats them. When she finishes, she drops the empty packet to the floor and brushes the crumbs from her hands. Soon, she is joined by a bearded man, Wayne Jordan, who sits several seats away. The two do not acknowledge one another. Then, as the performance properly begins, Jordan produces a recorder and starts to play, while Thompson begins to dance.

This is a new production from Emma Martin, her first since Luail’s revitalised staging of Dancehall in October of last year. Among her other notable works is Night Dances, which premiered at the Dublin Theatre Festival in 2021 before returning as part of the Dublin Dance Festival in 2024.

The stage is cluttered with odds and ends: a scattering of red plastic chairs, rails of clothing, and assorted props. At the rear hangs a cloud, which is slowly lifted heavenward as the production begins. Although the backdrops occasionally shift, the emphasis remains firmly on the choreography throughout.

There is a strong sense that the setting is a community hall or some other public gathering place. We watch this collection of eccentric individuals dance beyond the prying eyes of the outside world. Wayne Jordan assumes the role of caretaker, sweeping away discarded items and occasionally bringing props onto the stage, though he always remains somewhat detached from the others. Near the end of the performance, however, he is finally granted a moment of his own in the spotlight.

Kevin Gleeson’s sound design is suitably eclectic. Irish ballads from the 1950s give way to Eastern European folk sounds before dissolving into tribal rhythms. There is little obvious logic connecting the selections, no overarching musical theme beyond their emphatic percussion, which provides the dancers with a compelling pulse to move against.

The dance itself resists any clear structure, unfolding instead as a sequence of solo performances interspersed with duets and larger ensemble pieces. The movement is deliberately awkward, as though the performers are expressing themselves through ungainly gestures rather than overly polished choreography. They dance without inhibition, unconcerned with the fluid elegance associated with conventional dance floors. This is a space in which emotion takes precedence, where bodies jerk, sway, and flail freely. The result is an unusual and compelling work, one that explores both the instinctive human need to dance and its primal origins. With only a three-night run at the festival, it deserves a life far beyond this brief engagement, as it is ultimately a rich and rewarding theatrical experience.

Credits – 

Creation & Direction Emma Martin
Choreography Emma Martin in collaboration with the dancers
Dancers Sloan Caldwell, Kévin Coquelard, Róisín Harten, Yujin Jeong, Wayne Jordan, Stanley Menthor, Ennio Sammarco, Jessie Thompson
Music & Sound Design Kevin Gleeson
Scenograhy Katie Davenport, Emma Martin
Costume Designer Katie Davenport
Lighting Designer Stephen Dodd
Dramaturgy Wayne Jordan
Piano Song Andrew Hamilton
Costume Supervisors LaurA Fajardo, Nicola Burke
Costume Construction Mya Humphreys, Veronika Romanova
Stage Management Sinead Cormack
Technical & Lighting Management Susan Collins
Sound Engineer Kevin McGing
Assistant Stage Management & Props Dragana Stevanič
Scenic Artist Sandra Butler
Production Management Peter Jordan, Jim O’Connell
Producer for United Fall Jill Murray
Photography & Video Steve O’Connor
Production Photography Ros Kavanagh