C I V I L I S A T I O N

by Jaz Woodcock-Stewart with Morgann Runacre-Temple

A day in the life of a woman following a tragic event.

An experiment in theatrical realism and contemporary dance.

Jaz Woodcock-Stewart from award-winning company Antler collaborates with choreographer Morgann Runacre-Temple. From the creator behind critically acclaimed Lands, Civilisation is a sideways look at the untheatrical reality of loss. Music by ABBA and Bach.


Complex, raw and insensibly smart...I could watch it forever. Under Jaz Woodcock-Stewart’s astute direction, nothing is of note and everything is noticed.

★★★★ THE GUARDIAN


A profound piece of visual poetry...Civilisation is many things at once: theatre, dance, performance art, illuminating and baffling, hilarious and heart-breaking.

★★★★ THE LIST


Civilisation has immense confidence and wears its broken heart with a dignified sorrow. This is a show about loss and grief which begins by appearing to be about a single woman’s grief in the wake of a death but becomes about collective loss, the need to move beyond grief for what we have built and for what has been destroyed to create a new world...

Jaz Woodcock-Stewart has always had a consistent willingness to push at the boundaries and play with form. That's something that is all too rare with UK companies, and Antler's Civilsation is no different as it shifts from one form into another as it dances its way across the stage with under-stated authority. It is like quietly watching a bruise spread.

LYN GARDNER, STAGE DOOR



With poise and precision, Civilisation conjures a dreadful kind of beauty 

BEN KULCHIVIT, EXEUNT


Wonderfully understated, this snapshot of civilisation is fascinating in its mundanity

★★★★ REVIEWS HUB



Directed by Jaz Woodcock-Stewart

Choreography by Morgann Runacre-Temple and the company

Produced by Antler

Performed by Alethia Antonia, James Olivo, Sophie Steer, Emily Thompson-Smith, Seda Yildiz

Designed by Charlotte Espiner

Lighting Designer Alex Fernandes

Assistant Producer Eve Allin

Videography Richard Perryman

Production photos Alex Brenner

Developed with Lise Smith, Claire Gaydon, Laura Lorenzi, Fern Grimbley, Jack Anderson, Chihiro Kawasaki, Gabriella Schmidt, Amy Drew and Riley Wolf

Supported by New Diorama Theatre, Battersea Arts Centre, HOME Manchester, Arts Council England

Originally developed for First Drafts at the Yard Theatre

Underbelly, Edinburgh Fringe, 2019



Using Format