Seduction into Monochrome Coolness with Camille Cooper's double-bill 'Decadence, Desire & Decapitation'

Image: Camille Cooper in Salomé

Originally penned by Oscar Wilde, the play Salomé sees the Princess of the play's namesake fascinated with the beautiful words of a preacher who rejects her, only to demand his skull to kiss. Camille Cooper dances her rendition of Salomé as a light-hearted soul, twisted in her detachment as she dances with the preacher’s skull to mark the end of the piece. Latin ballroom combined with contemporary defines Cooper’s movement style, and she is intentionally charming as she frolics.  Quick, feisty steps push her hips into swift, swinging motions unique to Latin dances, but Salomé has no partner. A solo act, Salomé is singled out as wild and maybe even a little lonely. Although dancing solo certainly strengthens Salomé’s sense of character, narrative clarity is blurred at its crucial point. Details around why the preacher’s head is cut are never revealed, and it leaves an awkward gap that ruins the flow of the piece. Instead, Cooper’s palms face each other, fingers spreading, to mime holding his head as she gazes at it ecstatically with little background explanation. 

Image: Camille Cooper in Salomé

 Cooper’s elastic spine and natural sensuality, however, promise to hypnotise. Salomé’s beauty lies in the physical details and Cooper’s expression, making me wonder if the piece would work best as a dance film. For all the smiles, fiery foot stamps and hyperbolic curves, however, Cooper’s Salomé somehow lacks passion. She teases but there is little behind the coquettish act. It’s hard to recognise the hunger that should surely lie behind a woman who wants someone so badly she will kiss his decapitated head. 

Digging into the sultry and macabre, Portraits of Perversity proves to be Salomé’s stronger counterpart. Continuing the theme of female characters created in the male gaze, two pairs of dancers open the work by bringing to life images of repressed desire based on Aubrey Beardsley’s artwork. Lips are brought tantalisingly close, chests are thrust forward and hips pull back in seductive contortion. A duet has one dancer held in a headlock as her legs unfold sideways, and her partner pulls her jaw open. Violence and sex are skilfully balanced, a nod to the dark fascinations of the nineteenth century.

Image: Camille Cooper's Portraits of Perversity

Unsurprisingly for a work inspired by graphic art, Portraits’ physical images are striking. The shared wants and reactive nature of the group, however, really cements the work together. Whatever Lola Wants plays out, and Cooper herself reappears in a long white skirt and low-cut corset. Cheeky and teasing, her hips sway and the other dancers stare wide-eyed, captivated. Echoing her movements in their own way, they kneel shins-flat on the floor around Cooper, centres dragging up towards the ceiling, pelvises revolving towards Cooper in sync with her flicking hips. This femme fatale character (Velvet Underground’s song is also included in theatrical humour) is well presented as a superficial daydream, set apart from the other dancers as they move in awe of her. Their covetousness lends Portraits a sharp edge missing in Salomé, making it impossible to look away.

Image: Camille Cooper's Portraits of Perversity

Portraits of Perversity’s alluring characters, loose hair, frilly shirts, waistcoats and rock cultivates a savagely cool aesthetic grounded in Victorian essence. It feels as though Beardsley’s art has assumed a monochrome flesh tinged with desire and is a must-see for any art-lover. Salomé holds promise but misses the full-bodied personality of Portraits.

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Camille Cooper won the Brighton Fringe Bursary 2025. Decadence, Desire & Decapitation is her premiere at Brighton Fringe this year.