Sand by Kook Ensemble is a beautiful and entrancing piece that explores dementia and its impact on lives. This gorgeous production is rich with depth and delicately intertwines circus artistry with theatre. Initially, I was sceptical about how circus performance and theatre could blend well together, as the two seemed so distinct. My preconceived notions of circus performance saw it only as slapstick entertainment and risky tricks. However, SAND proved me completely wrong. I was blown away by the use of movement and how each step built together to tell a complex story about the struggles of dementia. The seamless transitions, from the simplicity of everyday life to more abstract, interpretive pieces, consistently circled back to a repeated morning scene, creating a deeply moving effect.

By far, the standout moment for me was the feather sequence. The way each performer moved the feathers around the stage was so intricate and precise, showcasing the sheer talent of the cast. This certainly contributed to the beauty of the sequence. The black backdrop paired perfectly with the multitude of white feathers, it was easy to get lost in the motion as they delicately floated across the stage, bobbing up and down. The interaction between the performers and the audience added to the haunting brilliance of the sequence; the way they blew the feathers in while the audience blew them out was mesmerizing. It was tragic in its subtlety, captivating in its illusion of permanence. You get lost in the beauty of it, and before you realize it, the feathers have slowly fallen one by one, until only a single feather remains in the palm of Heather’s hand.

It would be an injustice not to speak on the use of sand within the production. Initially, I did not see the connection—how could sand be relevant to a piece about dementia? But the performance so gently guided me, that by the end, I couldn’t think about anything but the sand. There is sand everywhere, along beaches, across shores, spanning deserts. Each grain plays a role in the larger picture, yet it is so fickle, effortlessly slipping through one’s fingers. That’s how I interpret its symbolism in the production. Each grain represents a memory of Dylan’s—a moment, a snapshot in time—and through the performance, you watch as it falls, seeps through fingers, crashes onto the table, and is swiped to the floor.

Overall, Sand is a spectacular performance, one that deeply connects with audiences of all ages and backgrounds. It left me wanting more, and I hope to see more from Kook Ensemble in the future.

Sand is a physical theatre production by Kook Ensemble, a company that uses the spectacular techniques of circus performance to tell the harrowing story of a man developing dementia while his wife helplessly watches him slip away. Having never seen a piece of circus theatre before, I (and I assume the same is true
for much of the audience) was not prepared to be moved to tears by juggling, but the four performers imbued each movement with so much emotion and depth of character that it was impossible not to be swept up in the emotional tide of Sand.

Without dialogue, Sand relies on the communicative power of dance and acrobatics to tell its heart wrenching tale of love and memory. The precision and synchronicity of the performers was stunning, and so clearly expressed the parallels and relationships between characters that any prior knowledge of the story was completely unnecessary. Particularly affective was the exploration not only of the relationship
between Heather and Dylan themselves, but also of their connections with their past selves and through them the very concept of memory. One especially emotive way in which this doubling of characters was used was in the strong synchronicity and mirroring of the two iterations of Heather (played by Ebony Gumbs and Dilly Taylor) in contrast with the increasing disparity between the two Dylans (Alvaro Grande
and Myles MacDonald), seeming to represent the fraying link that Dylan has with his past as dementia takes hold of him over the course of the play.

Alongside movement, the interaction of the performers with the set and props was hugely indicative of the gradual changes in Dylan’s mental state. The play began with a scene of Heather and Dylan at breakfast, the props of cups and bowls used for the most part as they would be in reality, though with some additional stylisation. At a later stage of the performance though, these same objects were
defamiliarised to the audience to reflect the way that they were losing their meaning to Dylan, resulting in a scene of him throwing them from the table while the three other actors rushed to catch and replace them. This same technique was used in a sequence of Dylan trying to put on a jumper, but completely at a loss as to how it was meant to function. At these moments the audience clearly felt very strongly for the
character and the disorientation that he was experiencing, so realistically portrayed by the performer through his interactions with such commonplace objects.

Unsurprisingly given its title, probably the most significant symbol of the play was sand. Throughout the performance it appeared repeatedly. At times characters seemingly attempted to catch a rope of sand as it fell from a bottle, but of course it only slipped through their grasping hands. It came to represent memory, in my mind, as something fragmented and impossible to hold together once it begins to slip and associated with the invariable passage of time. This culminated in a final sequence of Dylan juggling spheres of sand, some of which released streams of dust that whorled through the air in beautiful spirals and fell over and around him to represent the scattering of his past. Eventually these spheres stopped gently leaking sand and instead crumbled to nothing in his hands. During this final scene sobs and gasps filled the audience as they watched the character try and fail to hold on to his memory as it collapsed around him. Naturally, a riotous applause permeated by the intense emotion closed the performance, memorable and moving from
start to finish.

Kook Ensemble’s production Sand is an impressive mixture of physical theatre and circus arts that poignantly explores the impact of living with dementia. The couple at the centre of the narrative, revealed by the programme as Dylan and Heather, showcase the difficulties and
emotional toll of living with dementia through innovative movement. His world is becoming
increasingly complicated as dementia takes over, she is fighting to keep their love and memories alive even as he drifts away.

The story is told entirely through movement and sound. There is no dialogue, but a soundtrack of familiar songs and sounds, such as the ocean and checkout beeps, provide distinctive markers within the narrative. These sounds play a vital role in establishing the mood of a scene, and often help the audience decipher how characters truly feel. Actual sand is used as a metaphor throughout the performance, to show how as dementia progresses, memories fall away. The first indication that anything is wrong is when Dylan pours sand out of a cup directly onto the table – here the sand represents a drink that he
seems to have forgotten what to do with. Later, he juggles with balls filled with sand which spills out mid-air: he is literally trying to keep things going even as they are falling apart. The final disintegration of a few balls made entirely of sand depicts the inevitable tragic ending.

Two performers move alongside Dylan and Heather, portraying their younger selves and
paralleling their movements to both support and remind them of their earlier days. However, initially I felt there was some confusion between whether what was portrayed was a memory or an event happening in the present. It wasn’t until the two pairs of performers explicitly mirrored each other’s movements that it became obvious they were younger versions of themselves. Despite this, when only Heather participated in the movements recreating a memory, it became a significant and sorrowful indication of Dylan losing parts of himself to dementia.

Physicality was utilised to depict how simple tasks become increasingly difficult as the struggle with dementia progresses. A moment when Dylan falters, unable to move forward until a doormat is removed, serves as a poignant reminder of how everything once familiar has the possibility to become unrecognisable for those affected. Similarly, further through the performance, the three other actors surround Dylan with doorknobs – unable to escape them, the four performers are constantly moving, contorting around each other, each doorknob being represented as a new unexplainable challenge. Physicality is also used to illustrate the impact Dylan’s dementia has on Heather – at times, her movements become jagged, she appears isolated onstage, and a chair is even removed from under her, a literal removal of her support. Movingly, it is the representation of her younger self that acts as a comforting influence, the two performers dancing together, their shared physicality suggesting Heather finds solace in the memories of her and Dylan’s relationship.

The performance is both moving and engaging. There is clearly enormous trust between all the performers, and there is an openness to it that reminds us that even in the darkest of experiences, there is light.