Lowry unveils bold autumn season of pioneering contemporary performance

Featuring fearless physical theatre, gravity-defying circus, boundary-pushing dance and urgent new drama, Lowry has revealed another captivating contemporary Season for autumn 2026, bringing together some of the most innovative artists working across the UK and internationally.

Exploring ritual, identity, protest and transformation through movement, spectacle and striking visual storytelling, the latest programme promises an exhilarating run of performances that challenge and entertain in equal measure.

The season opens in September with Blaze FM, a high-energy celebration of rave culture, pirate radio and the communities forged on dancefloors in defiance of the systems that failed them, before Selene harnesses extraordinary aerial choreography to explore femininity, mythology and the lunar cycle through breathtaking contemporary circus.

Elsewhere, Madonna on the Rocks delivers a darkly comic and deeply personal portrait of addiction, faith and survival, while How Soon Is Now channels Manchester’s musical heritage into an electrifying fusion of dance and live performance, reflecting on identity, belonging and the city’s enduring cultural influence.

In October, classic storytelling is given an irreverent contemporary twist in Mistero Buffo, Dario Fo’s satirical masterpiece reimagined through sharp political wit, anarchic humour and gleeful blasphemy. The following week, Thanks for Being Here offers a joyous metatextual tribute to the audience itself, while Woodhill  brings a powerful excavation of carceral injustice and life inside the prison system, inspired by first-hand testimony and documentary research.

The programme continues to blur the boundaries between illusion and live performance with Iterations, as acclaimed magician Tom Cassani strips magic back to its essential mechanics, bringing audiences to the cusp of sleight-of-hand secrecy as they confront their susceptibilities. Circus duo Bert and Nasi return with L’Addition, transforming the simple act of settling a restaurant bill into a brilliantly absurd feat of acrobatics and physical comedy as the scene repeats itself, collapsing into a vortex of chaos with every reset.

Rounding off the season, Amazons reimagines the legendary female warriors through bold choreography and visceral movement, exploring power, myth and resistance with striking physical intensity and a beguilingly modern setting, before Rewrites: Jeezus! closes the programme with a playfully sacrilegious deconstruction of faith and contemporary culture, billed as an unholy union of Bo Burnham, Bad Bunny and Bertol Brecht.

Whether through dance, circus, comedy or experimental theatre, Lowry’s latest Contemporary Season once again showcases a wondrously diverse array of artists pushing the boundaries of live performance, allowing audiences to experience ambitious new ideas brought thrillingly to life on stage.

For more information and to book tickets for Lowry’s Autumn Contemporary Season, visit the Lowry website.