Prejudice and Passion

Daring, audacious and funny, based in the north of England, Carlos Pons Guerra creates darkly humorous, highly theatrical and vigorously physical work that often explores questions of gender and sexual identity. This film finds Carlos rehearsing dancers in preparation for O! Maria, a very Spanish tale of ham and bondage.

This is the most important performance of the work to date at one of London's major theatres, but Carlos isn't satisfied. He now wants to bring his avant-garde style and preoccupations to a broader audience. He is choreographing a new children's production at the Birmingham Rep, which tells a true story of two male penguins raising a baby penguin. This is about using dance to set an agenda - can Carlos channel the fight for acceptance that has defined him into the mainstream? For Carlos the show is deeply personal. He struggled hugely with homophobia as a child and as a young adult wanting to dance. What will his toughest critics - his parents - make of his new work?