Sadler’s Wells East presents world premiere of award-winning duo Jess & Morgs’ ‘DEEPFAKE’ 

Award-winning directors and choreographers Jess & Morgs (Jessica Wright and Morgann Runacre-Temple) present their first work as an independent company with the world premiere of DEEPFAKE at Sadler’s Wells East, running Thursday 1 – Saturday 3 October 2026.

Following major commissions for the Paris Opera Ballet and Scottish Ballet, including their Coppélia reimagining, which won the 2023 UK Theatre Award for Achievement in Dance and the Critics’ Circle National Dance Award for Best Classical Choreography, the duo presents their most ambitious work to date. Combining dance, film, and chroma-screen technology, DEEPFAKE interrogates contemporary uncertainty and the collapsing notion of objective truth.

The work centres on a high-stakes television interview between a politician and a political journalist. Created in collaboration with writer Jeff James, with set and costume design by Milla Clarke and video design by Dan Light, the stage is divided between a physical green-screen studio and a digitally projected world. As the conversation unfolds, live camera operators work in real time to layer performers into constantly shifting virtual environments, becoming a metaphor for half-truths and lies, playfully and absurdly revealing the mechanics of manipulation in plain sight.

Working at the intersection of technology and dance, Jess & Morgs bring a distinct perspective to a form that remains largely male-dominated. They first met while studying at Central School of Ballet and have continued to explore the contemporary possibilities of a classical art form and collaborated with students of Central in this production. DEEPFAKE was originally conceived and developed at DanceEast’s Green-Screen studio with major support from the Jerwood Foundation. The show will preview at DanceEast (25 Sep) ahead of the London World Premiere.

DEEPFAKE is co-commissioned by Sadler’s Wells Theatre and DanceEast as a DanceEast Jerwood Commission. Supported by The Space, Arts Council England, HereEast, and the Abderrahim Crickmay Charitable Settlement.

DEEPFAKE was created in partnership with Central School of Ballet and with thanks to HAWK, Target 3D and Studio Wayne McGregor FreeSpace programme.

Jess & Morgs said, “We are really excited to present our first work as an independent company at Sadler’s Wells East. DEEPFAKE, originally conceived and developed at Dance East’s green screen studio, is a meeting of forms – dance, text, technology and film – as a medium to examine power, the systems which hold it in place, and the process of controlling a narrative. Together with writer Jeff James, a long-time collaborator, the piece explores the intersection between the precision of language and the visceral power of dance. Continuing our investigation into live cinema, DEEPFAKE exploits its unique capacity to both reveal and obscure the live performance, inviting audiences to question what they see, what they believe, and how a ‘truth’ is built.”

Rob Jones, Associate Artistic Director of Sadler’s Wells,said, “Jess and Morgs are true visionary artists and one of the most exciting choreographic duos to do it. DEEPFAKE marks an important milestone in the company’s journey as this work has been produced by the company – they are in complete control and we are thrilled to be on this journey with them!”

Audiences can experience Jess & Morgs’ DEEPFAKE at Sadler’s Wells East from Thursday 1–Saturday 3 October 2026. Tickets are available now from £15 at www.sadlerswells.com.   

Jess and Morgs, ‘DEEPFAKE’. Still from footage by ChewBoy Productions