The Limit, Linbury Theatre, (Royal Opera House, London)

Exceptional dance and spoken version of the play Sam Steiner’s Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons — tender, funny and poignant by turn. In a dystopian future a couple experience a government crackdown on free speech — people are legally limited to use of 140 words a day.

Keeping the text but adding dance brings depth to the emotional and physical tensions experienced by the couple as we bounce backwards and forwards through time with them. In the form of a series of conversations, we see them before and after as they get to know each other, fall in love, struggle with the new work vs personal use work limits and their own personal reactions to the ‘new normal’. Further more, dance adds connection for us as an audience and the couple — we learn more about who they are, beyond their words.

Stark minimal staging added to the dystopian feel of the piece — thrillingly at one point we were plunged into darkness as the word count limits began and the couple worked out how to communicate with each other within the law, Slowly the light lifted as they spoke.

Hannah Rudd as Bernadette and Jacob Wye as Oliver convincingly and engagingly danced out the emotional and relational complexity of this play — with Bernadette’s angry firing off of her remaining daily word limit especially powerful. Equally delightful was the reunited couple dancing to Bruce Springsteen, but unable to finish singing along to the lyrics due to the daily word count quotas. Completing this staging was Isobel Waller-Bridge’s beautiful music which came alongside the dancing and did not overpower or distract.