5 Soldiers

A thrilling and humane portrait of army life telling the stories of men and women serving on the front line.

In 2008, choreographer Rosie Kay joined the 4th Battalion The Rifles, to watch and participate in full battle exercises, and visited the National Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre. What came of these observations was the award-winning, five-star work 5 Soldiers.

“An extraordinary exploration of modern war as a physical experience.” (The Independent) 5 Soldiers offers no moral stance on war. Instead it questions what it is that we ask of our soldiers and explores how the human body remains essential to war, even in the 21st century.

Rosie Kay is choreographer of the Commonwealth Games Handover Ceremony and the hit film Sunshine on Leith. Her trademark style of intense physical and athletic dance theatre aims to thrill and move.

“Lust, shock and awe… 5 Soldiers is a disturbing, illuminating and necessary glimpse into a world we mostly prefer to ignore” Judith Mackrell in The Guardian, Top 10 Dance of 2015

The work changes perceptions of the soldier in the mind of the general public, allowing soldiers to be seen as humans and individuals, showing the sheer effort and physical work involved, and touching people with a deep understanding and portrayal of the life of a soldier.