STRICT security measures at "the live military venue" of Imphal Barracks will require audience members to bring photo ID when attending 5 Soldiers: The Body Is The Frontline tonight or tomorrow night. Please note that bags may be searched too .

Such is the code of conduct that contrasts with a normal night at the theatre in York, as the Rosie Kay Dance Company mounts the first British tour of its kind in partnership with theatres, military bases and the Army Welfare Service.

"With the commemorations of the First World War in the news, 5 Soldiers shows how the human body is still essential to all conflict, even in the 21st century, with the impact and injuries lasting long after the headlines fade," says artistic director and choreographer Rosie Kay, whose company will be playing three theatres, four bases and an Oxford college.

The York shows will be staged in a specially created theatre off site at Imphal Barracks. "It's been two years of working and planning to put these shows together," says Rosie. "What's been great is that when we did this show before, it was a just a mainstream theatre tour, but I knew it was a powerful show, so when we did a performance at the Rifles Club Drillhall in Mayfair in 2010, and a one-week residency at 5 Rifles Paderborn, Germany, it was those two experiences that really inspired this new tour.

"When you combine a civilian and military audience it has an added power because the military audience can respond to questions asked by the civilian one."

The no-holds-barred 5 Soldiers carries Kay's trademark style of intensely physical and athletic dance theatre, using dance, in the words of General Sir Nick Parker, to "help create a complex and nuanced picture of conflict in one of the most innovative and compelling initiatives that I have experienced in the aftermath of Iraq and Afghanistan".

"It demonstrates how art can be used as a powerful tool in the healing process, how it can touch the extended family of those who have been caught in the horror of battle and how it can send a universal message about the soldier," he continues. "It is an extraordinary achievement which will make a difference to many people."

Rosie responds: "For military groups, we've approached this very sensitively, and we're clear that this project is about humanising the subject with dignity and respect. We've found that people, once we've gained their trust, appreciate the fact that we're trying to bring this subject to the general public."

Kay’s exploration of war in dance was made after field research that involved her joining The 4th Battalion The Rifles for two weeks and experiencing full battle exercises on Dartmoor and Salisbury Plain. She then visited the military rehabilitation centre, at Headley Court, to see the effects of conflict and training on the soldiers’ bodies.

"I'd suffered a serious injury on stage, when I dislocated my left knee and was told that I might not dance again or even walk again, and two nights after that I had a dream where I was on a desert battlefield and my injured leg had been blown off – I think I must have been on too much medication – and I had a realisation that my body is not my soul. You can blow my arms and legs off but I'll still be me.

"I then made this connection between how dancers train and are so passionate about what we do, never thinking about the long-term physical consequences, and I wondered if it was the same for soldiers. There must be something that makes them risk not just limbs but their life too."

For 5 Soldiers, five dancers new to Rosie's Birmingham company, Duncan Anderson, Chester Hayes, Sean Marcs, Oliver Russell and Shelley Eva Haden, underwent a six-week rehearsal period. Their ages range from 18 to 27 to match the young soldiers, and during a week-long military exercise with The 4th Battalion they ended up "fighting" against the battalion.

"Though it was only a week, I really could see the difference physically afterwards," says Rosie. "You could see it in their performance as we then changed the choreography because of their patrol training.

"Mentally too it's very hard for young dancers to go into a military world, but they gained a glimpse of that world and it humanised soldiers for them, making them realise that people really do do this job, going out to battlefields so young."

Rosie Kay Dance Company presents 5 Soldiers: The Body Is The Frontline tonight and tomorrow  at Imphal Barracks, Fulford Road, York, at 7.30pm; bring photo ID; bags may be searched. Free parking is available; the venue is fully accessible but tickets must be pre-booked on 01904 623568 or at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk

Tonight's show will be followed by a post-show talk with choreographer Rosie Kay and the company. Tomorrow, York groups participating in the 5 Soldiers Community Engagement Programme will perform short pieces before the main show, choreographed by York dance tutor Sam Lawrence.