Two fine, contrasting pieces of physical theatre came to Oxford last week. At the Pegasus, Urban Playground performed Run This Town, in which they manage to turn the French urban art of parkour, or free-running, into a high-speed stage show. Parkour originated in using what’s found in the inner city — walls, railings, roofs, buildings — as a stage for dangerous jumping and running between, over or through obstacles. To bring this to the stage the company uses a set made almost entirely of real builder’s scaffolding, with platforms high and low, a slide, and lots of small openings between the poles. We meet a woman and four men, employ-ees at a nameless city company, who jostle for promotion, supervised by their female boss, the dauntingly elegant Miranda Henderson. Also in the cast is one of the founders of parkour, Malik Diouf. Performers fly through, and over the set, fighting, dancing and leaping at breathtaking speed.

At The Playhouse, The Five and the Prophesy of Prana tells an oriental story of good vs evil. An emperor has gained power by harnessing the five elements of wood, fire, earth, metal and water. Whoever can bring them together can rule. Their essence is contained in glass globes. Guardians of the elements are still being trained. Their early efforts bring a whiff of comedy, but this is a dramatic, angry fiesta of stylised dance, with terrific martial arts fights. The constantly changing projected backdrops add a remarkable intensity. A great show.