HEREFORD Courtyard was treated to an additional treat at last week's production of Ruins by Anurekha Ghosh & Co.

The 12-minute piece titled Bliss: Song of Pilgrimage was added to the three set pieces which have been touring for the past two months.

Famed for her fusion of North Indian Kathak dance with other forms - Spanish flamenco, Western contemporary and martial art - it was an evening of beautiful, mesmerising movement.

Programmed as a "celebration of hope and existence, exploring the struggles of the familiar into the unknown", the music by Jayita Pandey and Glyn Perry lent added headiness to an intoxicating entertainment.

A hiccup with the recorded sound was dealt with seamlessly by the company, which moved off stage as fluidly as it had moved on before re-starting the piece.

Blurred images of urban scenes shown on a background screen, freestanding 'tabs', and simple costumes, which created good shapes with the movement, worked within the contrasting styles of each piece.

Julie Harries