Rambert Elements is a new nationwide choreographic challenge initiative for secondary schools and colleges that will launch during the 2015/16 academic year. The initiative aims to raise the profile of choreography in schools and colleges and provide a national programme of professional support for students and teachers, to support the development of choreographic practice in future generations. Rambert is renowned for supporting choreography within its own company of dancers, which greatly complements the scheme.
The programme will give groups of students across the country the chance to create and perform short works inspired by themes and sequences of movement devised by some of Britain’s leading choreographers; Mark Baldwin (Rambert’s Artistic Director), Aletta Collins and Alexander Whitley. Each will create a ‘toolkit’ that will include a title, music, interviews with the choreographers and demonstrations by Rambert dancers of pre-devised movement phrases and tasks, which groups can use as starting points. They will also include materials relating to the choreographers’ inspirations for the pieces. This Rambert initiative is a stepping stone for students interested in developing their choreography, by taking pre-existing movement and personalising it.
Participating groups will create their own works, with the opportunity to showcase this at one of six regional venues: Edinburgh Festival Theatre; The Lowry, Salford; Norwich Playhouse; Rambert; Royal Concert Hall, Nottingham and Theatre Royal, Plymouth. One group from each regional venue will then be invited to perform their work accompanied by the Rambert Orchestra at a central London theatre in June 2016.
Rambert Elements is bringing leading choreographers into the classroom and celebrating young people’s creativity and diversity, raising the profile of dance throughout the country. The pilot will see more than 500 pupils from 36 schools and colleges across the UK taking part, with the aim of increasing both the number of participants and the reach of the programme year on year. Schools and colleges will be able to apply up until 4 September 2015 with the selected groups announced on 10 September 2015.