Lin Hwai-min founded Cloud Gate Dance Theatre in Taiwan in 1973, the first contemporary dance company in the Chinese-speaking world. In the decades since, the troupe has travelled the world, notching up an impressive international reputation with its stylish productions.

Stylish this latest one, now on show at Sadler’s Wells, certainly is. Wild Cursive, a dance in 12 sections, was inspired by the aesthetic rigour of Chinese calligraphy and is the third in a trilogy of full-length works so inspired. The set comprises scrolls of white rice paper that rise and lower as the dance demands. The clever part is the black ink that slowly seeps on to the paper (from hidden pipes above) to form abstract patterns that are different at every performance. The choreography, set among the scrolls, takes the random lines of the ink flow as a template for the constantly shifting movement language.

“Wild calligraphy,” so the programme tells us, “frees characters from any set form and exposes the spiritual state of the writer in its expressive abstraction.” The elaborate scrawl of Lin’s choreography, which segues from the aggressive postures of martial arts to the stark compression of utter stillness, feels similarly liberated. Yet it is precisely this quality that makes Wild Cursive such a long sit. A show of 70 uninterrupted minutes needs more variety and focus than the stream of coil-and-stretch dynamics provided by Lin’s writing, which is influenced as much by Western contemporary dance as by traditional Eastern schools of movement.

That’s not to say there aren’t some wonderful sequences: the slow-motion dancing is hypnotically beautiful, the use of silhouette is striking, the sheer flow of movement is incredibly adroit. It’s just that the destination of Lin’s journey isn’t quite worth the trip.

The music doesn’t help. A soundscape of howling winds, waves crashing over pebbles, cicadas chirruping and temple bells clanging is fine as a kind of meditative backdrop. But its complete lack of motive energy is ultimately deadening to the action on stage.

Still, the performers are absolutely riveting. The 19 dancers are trained in t’ai chi, martial arts, meditation, Chinese Opera movement, ballet and modern dance. Their control is every bit as astounding as the agility demanded by choreography that wraps itself around them like a vine hugging a tree.

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