Dance Direct Blog. News, Reviews & Advice About Dance

Sadler’s Wells’ Spring 2018 season includes many highlights, primarily reflecting the venue’s long-term relationships with artists such as Akram Khan and Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, and its most recent Associate Artist, Crystal Pite. Supporting artists at every stage of their career is at the heart of what Sadler’s Wells does, and this begins with its commitment to nurturing the next generation of talent. The world premiere of National Youth Dance Company is a clear highlight each spring season, with the latest cohort of young dancers working with Sharon Eyal. Continue reading Sadler’s Wells Spring season highlights

Dance Consortium, a group of 19 large-scale venues with a shared passion for bringing the best international contemporary dance to the UK, has announced the details of its next tour for spring 2018. Ballet British Columbia, Canada’s leading contemporary dance company, kicks off its UK engagement at Sadler’s Wells in London on Tuesday 6 March. The tour will then head to Brighton, Newcastle, Birmingham and Salford Quays and conclude in Bradford on Saturday 24 March. Continue reading Dance Consortium’s Ballet British Columbia

The local council in Plymouth is supporting a feasibility study for transforming the local Street Factory studio into a hip hop education centre for hard-to-reach young people. Local businesses and architects are also involved in the project, which will see a theatre, community cafe, recording studio, dance studio, and teaching space created in the ex-industrial building, the first of its kind in the UK. Continue reading The UK’s first hip hop theatre in Plymouth

Inactivity among older people in deprived areas of the country is set to be tackled through a new £495k dance scheme that will help disguise physical activity as fun, tackling the issue with long term goals. The project therefore marks a change in strategy for its funder Sport England, which highlights how willing it is to consider how dance could tackle inactivity. Those within the sector appear to agree unanimously about the benefits of dance – particularly for older people – so part of this project is also extending that understanding to those external. Continue reading New dance product tackling older inactivity

For the first time, Birmingham Royal Ballet will brings its production of the Nutcracker to the Royal Albert Hall. The staging has been created especially for the Royal Albert Hall, with video and projection designed by 59 Productions (An American in Paris, War Horse), period costumes, Birmingham Royal Ballet’s 70 world-class dancers and a full symphony orchestra. Nutcracker will be performed from 28 to 31 December. Continue reading Birmingham Royal Ballet heads to London for Christmas

The first two-year practice-based dance degree in the UK has been launched by University of Suffolk and DanceEast. The degree will be hosted at DanceEast’s Jerwood DanceHouse which boasts some of the best dance facilities in the country, including purpose-built dance studios and a fully equipped 200-seat theatre, supported by a team of highly trained staff. Continue reading University of Suffolk launches Dance degree with DanceEast

Ivan Putrov’s new edition of Men in Motion, an exploration of the changing role of the male dancer over the last century, is back this November at the London Coliseum (for two performances only, on 22 and 23 November). Men in Motion pays homage to the great dancers and choreographers of the past and showcases some of the most exciting and diverse artists at work today. This year’s cast includes Putrov, Matthew Ball, Edward Watson, Daniel Proietto and Irek Mukhamedov amongst others with new choreography. Continue reading Men in Motion

Britain’s national dance company, Rambert, invites arts practitioners and healthcare professionals to a day of workshops, panel discussions and practical sessions, with opportunities to share and discuss experiences, learning and insight around dance in healthcare. The event marks the conclusion of a three-year programme run by Rambert and supported by City Bridge Trust, exploring the therapeutic and wellbeing benefits of dance in a variety of healthcare contexts, from regular dance classes for people living with Parkinson’s or dementia, to working with patients in hospitals and day centres. Continue reading Rambert highlights the use of dance in medicine

For the first time ever, The World’s Biggest Pantomime Ltd will play in London, presenting Peter Pan at The SSE Arena, Wembley for four performances only, on Friday 29 and Saturday 30 December 2017. Continue reading Four performances of the world’s biggest pantomime

The Snowman has transported children into the wintery wonderland of a boy and his magical snowman for a record-breaking 20 consecutive years in London’s West End, at The Peacock theatre. With a mix of dancing and live music – including Walking in the Air – the pair embark on a starry-skied adventure to the North Pole, where they meet dancing penguins, reindeer, Father Christmas, an Ice Princess, and escape the clutches of Jack Frost. Continue reading The Snowman returns