Where Northern Ballet’s notorious skills for characterisation are more evident is in “Fools,” a returning work by Mthuthuzeli November. Based on the 1976 novel “Hill of Fools” by R.L. Peteni, the storyline follows a star-crossed pair from warring families in a fictional South African township: Thembu and Hlubi. They’re young and expecting and their families aren’t fond of each other, already a little foolish, but it's when the young woman is caught by her possessive brother that the dividing lines become stronger and more violent. 

Sarah Chun, as the unnamed Hlubi woman is weighted by pressures, she is in a near constant opposition within her body. This sense of bodily tension dots throughout “Fools” like a motif, arabesques and reaches are strained while bursts of energy emerge like a bolt from the ground through stamping feet and lighting-quick petit allegro. Harris Beattie as the Thembu boy has charm in buckets, a true character artist with the skill of a danseur noble. November’s work packs a lot in a short run time, pacing feels a little rushed, but there is no denying his choreographic gifts. The energy of the piece builds and builds to a dizzying effect with pounding South African rhythms providing that extra oomph—November is also one of the composers. There is a real sense that unlike other choreographers who haphazardly mash ballet with other styles and cultural contexts, November manages to make it all look so natural. With a little more dramaturgical finesse he could well become a top-dog of the ballet world.