After the success of BLKDOG, Botis Seva and Far From The Norm cement their distinctive style of hip hop theatre with Until We Sleep.
Until We Sleep, the latest hip-hop dance work from acclaimed London-based choreographer Botis Seva, is a dark, atmospheric journey through resistance, transformation, and survival.
Set against the backdrop of authoritarian power, a lone nomad searches for faith while guiding a restless community through shifting realms of time. With Seva’s signature blend of Hip Hop physicality and freeform movement, the dancers of Far From The Norm navigate a world shaped by struggle and resilience.
Driven by a haunting soundscape of percussion and guttural textures, the choreography pulses with urgency. Feathered costumes evoke warriors shedding past identities, while stark lighting carves the stage into a volatile arena—one where a higher force looms, unrelenting and divine.
Until We Sleep explores the tension between hope and responsibility, asking what we cling to in order to keep going. Visceral and poetic, it’s a powerful invocation of the human spirit’s fight to stay awake in a world that wants it to sleep.
"Until we are put to sleep, until we are no longer on the earth then we must fight for justice and peace. Until We Sleep is about perseverance, strength and the pursuit of peace." BOTIS SEVA
Until We Sleep is a combination of Botis' rebellious earlier choreographic urges and his more recent methodological learnings and personal life maturities over the past 14 years.
In 2015, Botis Seva was commissioned to create a debut evening of short works at Sadler's Wells in the Lilian Baylis Theatre, supported by Breakin’ Convention. InNoForm, was a notable pivot in Botis' choreographic journey, and it saw him go on to be an Aerowaves Twenty17 artist but more significantly, it pinpointed the beginning of his international career.
Botis' experiences of creating InNoForm and presenting work for the first time to international delegates and writers, led Botis to want to explore the seed of an idea. A work that unapologetically dives into how the history of colonialism both in society and within the dance sector.
Until We Sleep is co-produced by DanceEast, DE SINGEL, Points Communs - Nouvelle Scène nationale of Cergy-Pontoise / Val d'Oise, Rum för Dans, Sadler's Wells, schrit_tmacher Festival, Tanz Köln (Cologne), Théâtre de la Ville - Paris, The Joyce Theater and The Lowry. Commissioned by Brighton Dome & Festival and Warwick Arts Centre. Supported by FABRIC and University of East London Dance: Urban Practice. Funded by Arts Council England, The Linbury Trust, Cockayne Grants for the Arts, PRS Foundation’s The Open Fund and The London Community Foundation.
Watch the trailer
