The Place is launching a revolutionary programme for professional choreographers, in which a cohort of up to 12 artists at different stages of their career will be consistently supported in every phase of their artistic development. Entitled Work Place, the scheme aims to sustain some of the most talented artists in the current generation of UK dance professionals, enabling them to thrive in a network of fully-skilled independent dance practitioners.
Launching in April 2011, The Place will invest over £500,000 of its resources over the next three years in Work Place, which maximises the combined potential of the organisation. Artists will be provided a platform for the creation and performance of new works, and concurrently offered educational and entrepreneurial training, nurturing their all-round professional development.
Work Place has been created in response to direct feedback from independent artists, and in line with the Arts Council's 2009 study Dance Mapping: a window on dance. The scheme addresses chronic issues affecting the industry, including the lack of teaching, entrepreneurial and management skills.
Work Place will help to fill this skills gap, building on The Place’s programmes and its partnerships and networks with other UK dance organisations – including DanceEast, Dance Umbrella, DanceXchange and Sadler’s Wells – to ensure the integration of the industry’s best resources and opportunities. Work Place artists will also benefit from The Place’s strong international networks, helping them gain recognition within both the UK and wider European dance communities.
Each individual Work Place artist will follow a bespoke programme, complementing core activities of artistic research and creative production with a series of training initiatives. Residencies at local, national and international level, coaching opportunities from industry experts addressing managerial and financial needs, and developmental teaching contracts working with The Place’s pre-vocational training programme (Centre for Advanced Training) and vocational training (London Contemporary Dance School) will be part of the programme. Artists will also have the unique opportunity to work with Richard Alston Dance Company, exploring choreographic ideas with the company’s exceptional dancers, and be personally mentored by Richard Alston, The Place’s Artistic Director.
The Place will invite artists to join Work Place based on their previous practice and development needs, with a view to forming a cohort which reflects the diversity of the UK independent dance scene. Invited artists will have normally taken part in other of The Place’s professional development programmes, for example Resolution! or Choreodrome.
Leading UK choreographer Wayne McGregor, himself an artist supported by The Place at the beginning of his choreographic career, and now a Patron of The Place, commented:
"The creation of a growing, interconnected and self-sustainable community of independent dancers is a much-needed condition for the future of the UK's dance industry. Work Place is a significant addition to the development provision for dance at a vital moment, ensuring that artists continue to get the support they need in the changing, difficult times that lie ahead."
Contacts
For further information, interviews:
The Place Communication Office
Marta Bogna, Press and Media Manager
020 7121 1025/ marta.bogna@theplace.org.uk
The Place would like to thank the Foyle Foundation for their generous support towards Work Place, enabling us to fund the Artist Manager role over the first two years of the initiative.
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