The Four Temperaments/Untouchable/Song of the Earth, Royal Ballet

THE FOUR TEMPERAMENTS/UNTOUCHABLE/SONG OF THE EARTH, ROYAL BALLET Shechter première odd one out in triple bill with Balanchine and MacMillan

Shechter première odd one out in triple bill with Balanchine and MacMillan

After the second piece of last night's triple bill, Hofesh Shechter's Untouchable in its world premiere, my friend asked me why it had been put on the programme with the first piece, George Balanchines 1946 Four Temperaments. He wondered if there was some structural or thematic connection that he had missed between the two wildly different pieces. The Balanchine speaks obviously to the bill's last item, Kenneth MacMillan's 1966 Song of the Earth; both pair a cool neoclassical choreographic idiom with deeply felt but vaguely expressed melancholy.

Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Channel 4

The fantasy drama returns without much fantasy, or drama

Warning! Spoilers ahead, etc… Bearing in mind the high-octane thrills of recent Marvel forays into cinema, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is a surprisingly unshowy show. Some have taken this to be a good thing, though I suspect these people simply don’t like comic book adaptations or superheroes much. Me? I love comic-book characters – preferably covered in spandex and the sweat of battle. I want to see them have a massive scrap and fight personal demons along with extraterrestrial threats and improbably accented supervillains.

Bayadère - The Ninth Life, Shobana Jeyasingh Company, Linbury Studio Theatre

BAYADÈRE – THE NINTH LIFE, SHOBANA JEYASINGH COMPANY, LINBURY STUDIO Engaging dance treatment of Indian-European cultural and disciplinary encounters

Engaging dance treatment of Indian-European cultural and disciplinary encounters

The premise of last night’s world première made so much sense that one almost wondered why nobody had done it before now. Commissioned by the Royal Opera House and in its downstairs Linbury space, Shobana Jeyasingh, a classically-trained Indian dancer and now director of her own contemporary dance company, would respond to the 19th-century ballet about an Indian temple dancer, La Bayadère, which has wonderful choreography but presents an entirely Western, Orientalist vision of the “exotic” east.

CD: Blancmange – Semi Detached

CD: BLANCMANGE - SEMI DETACHED Neil Arthur returns and raises his game with a singular vision

Neil Arthur returns and raises his game with a singular vision

After waiting a quarter of a century for Blancmange’s last album, 2011’s Blanc Burn, this new offering, effectively a Neil Arthur solo project, almost feels like a rush release. There’s a much changed visual aesthetic – gone is the stylised, Fifties cover kitsch, replaced by something much more stark and impenetrable. Now, I know you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but what about CDs?

CD: Carter Tutti – Carter Tutti Plays Chris & Cosey

Chris & Cosey take it to the stage with souped-up songs that go further than you might expect

There’s a danger in an artist having their work reinterpreted that the end result will be little more than a rough outline of the original. Look at Metallica’s axe job on the Velvet Underground for instance. Still, on the bright side, at least they increased the band’s "reach" to include jocks and morons.

Magnificent Obsessions, Barbican Art Gallery

MAGNIFICENT OBSESSIONS, BARBICAN ART GALLERY Jumble sale or treasure trove? Exploring the collections of 14 postwar and contemporary artists

Jumble sale or treasure trove? Exploring the collections of 14 postwar and contemporary artists

The title has it about right: no matter what it is they are busily acquiring, collectors seem to be an obsessive bunch, and their obsessions can achieve quite magnificent proportions. The stereotyped image of the collector as a socially challenged monomaniac doesn’t really fit with the popular understanding of the artistic temperament, though.

CD: Panda Bear – Panda Bear Meets the Grim Reaper

CD: PANDA BEAR - PANDA BEAR MEETS THE GRIM REAPER Noah Lennox's latest album is meaty, beaty, big and bouncy

Noah Lennox's latest album is meaty, beaty, big and bouncy

Some have suggested that the title of Panda Bear’s fifth studio album means this could be the last we hear of Noah Lennox’s musical alter ego. If he is going, he’s certainly not doing it quietly, as this follow up to 2011’s Tomboy takes the intense sophistication of that album, hits delete and replaces it with day-glo drumbreaks and crayon-coloured consonance that dazzle and amaze like a disco ball shooting rainbows.

CD: Theo Parrish – American Intelligence

CD: THEO PARRISH – AMERICAN INTELLIGENCE Theo Parrish's latest offering is strong on songs but overlong

Theo Parrish's latest offering is strong on songs but overlong

Last month, Theo Parrish released his album, American Intelligence, on vinyl and CD. Now it’s available on digital, but make sure you’ve got room on your hard drive – it’s long. Seriously, marathons have been run quicker than the two hours and three minutes here.

Golem, 1927, Young Vic

GOLEM, 1927, YOUNG VIC Brilliant and endlessly inventive theatre from this young British company

Brilliant and endlessly inventive theatre from this young British company

British theatre company 1927 celebrate their 10th birthday next year. Over this nearly-decade they have produced just three shows (plus a reimagining of The Magic Flute for Berlin’s Komische Oper). If that seems a little like slacking then you’ve obviously never seen one of their creations. To say they are meticulous is true, but also fails to reflect the sense of imaginative excess, of abundance, that pulses through everything they make. Animation, live action, music, song, dance and mime all have a place in their world.

The Way Back Home, ENO, Young Vic

THE WAY BACK HOME, ENO, YOUNG VIC A colourful children's show that's got Christmas written all over it

A colourful children's show that's got Christmas written all over it

A Martian, a Spitfire and a flatulent penguin are the unlikely ingredients for The Way Back Home, English National Opera’s first foray into the colourful world of children’s opera. And if those don’t sound like enticement enough, be reassured, at only 45 minutes long this really is a child-friendly taster of a genre that doesn’t always get the best press when it comes to accessibility.