Our monthly round-up of some of the successes for Trinity Laban alumni.

March was a month of high-profile successes for our Dance alumni. Cameron Everitt joined fellow alumnus Jack Perry in Sir Matthew Bourne OBE‘s company New Adventures for their UK and international tour of Swan Lake, a production that has won over thirty international accolades including an Olivier and three Tony Awards. Sir Matthew Bourne OBE, himself an alumnus, was the recipient of 2019’s Special Olivier Award in recognition of his extraordinary achievements in dance.

Meanwhile, The Swallowsfeet Collective, a group of five dance alumni, curated Oops Festival in Brighton, a weekend of contemporary dance and film screenings from around the world. The group formed to produce performance events while in their final year of study at Trinity Laban. They are Rosa Firbank, Jessica Léa Haener, Jessica Miller, Gordon Raeburn and Sivan Rubinstein who presented her work Maps, centred on a large map of the world made from 50kg of salt. Hear more from the collective in this Crosscurrent Spotlight podcast.

Our jazz alumni have been receiving mainstream press attention. Saxophonist Nubya Garcia received a 5-star review in The Guardian for her performance at London’s Village Underground venue with fellow alumni Moses Boyd (drums) and Joe Armon-Jones (keyboard), described by critic John Lewis as ‘the apotheosis of a scene that is making history, reinventing jazz in a London accent.’

Garcia also spent March touring Italy’s jazz festivals with her quartet and Moses Boyd performed at South Africa’s 2019 Cape Town International Jazz Festival with his group rePercussions which melds free-flowing jazz with the infectious dance rhythms of South African Gqom music.

Eight-piece Afrobeat group Kokoroko, featuring alumni Sheila Maurice-Grey (trumpet), Cassie Kinoshi (saxophone, composition alumnus) and Oscar Jerome (guitar), released their self-titled debut EP on Brownswood Recordings. Their sound is influenced by West African groove, highlife and jazz styles that bandleader Maurice-Grey believes ‘shouldn’t stay within our parents’ generation.’ Kokoroko will be playing a string of European tour dates and jazz festivals throughout April and May to promote their release.

Cassie Kinoshi wrote the music for the National Theatre’s production of Top Girls, an innovative play about a nation divided by its own ambitions, playing at the Lyttelton Theatre until 22 JUN. Meanwhile, further afield, guitarist Oscar Jerome was in the line-up of the 2019 SXSW Festival in Austin, Texas playing his original music which sits at the intersection between hip-hop, improvisatory jazz and introspective soul.

Our vocal graduates are also working at the pinnacle of their field. Soprano Nardus Williams has been cast for her English National Opera debut as Micaëla in Bizet’s iconic opera Carmen early next year. She joins fellow vocal alumnus Keel Watson who takes on the bass-baritone role of Zuniga.

There have been successes for our Musical Theatre alumni as well. Jochebel Ohene Maccarthy began rehearsals for her new ensemble role in in the Curve Theatre Leicester & Birmingham Hippodrome co-production of The Colour Purple, a family chronicle set in the segregated Southern USA. The production opens 28 JUN and runs until 11 JUL.

Musical Theatre alumnus Tom Brandon played Hard-Man in The Choir of Man, a new feel-good show featuring popular songs from the likes of Paul Simon, Adele, Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Queen. The show toured Australia and North America. Reviewed in Adelaide’s In Daily, it is described as ‘everything you could want from a night out at your local pub, with a serious upgrade on the karaoke’.

Our Composition alumni have been busy this March. Alumnus and composition tutor Soosan Lolavar’s aria I’m Not Exactly Who I Say I Am from her opera ID, Please was performed by countertenor Jamie Hall as part of Trinity Laban’s lunchtime Venus Blazing concert, celebrating International Women’s Day. It was broadcast live on BBC Radio 3.

Nicholas Morrish is one of seven composers participating in Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra’s National Composers Intensive 2019. He spent March in New York workshopping a new piece with the International Contemporary Ensemble to be performed at the Noon to Midnight new music festival in Los Angeles.

Composition alumnus Max De Lucia has co-founded new international sonic branding agency DLMDD. He commented, –

“The audio and voice market is booming, but there aren’t many agencies claiming ownership of the sonic branding space. … DLMDD aims to become the number one agency to help [brands] navigate that arena.”

De Lucia is also a long-time supporter of The Choir With No Name – a UK-wide collective of choirs for people who have experienced homelessness. He has led performances for The Royal Family and The Mayor of London across venues including the Royal Festival Hall and Wembley Arena.

For his work on the Star Wars spin-off film Solo, composer and alumnus John Powell was presented with the International Film Music Critics Association Awards for Score of the Year and Best Original Score for a Fantasy/Science Fiction/Horror Film.

Alumni from our specialised Dance programmes have been making significant contributions to their respective fields. Dance Science alumnus Nefeli Tsiouti wrote an article about injury prevention in breakdance, published on the 4Dancers blog. She has created the Breakalign Method to enable hip-hop dancers to practise safely with minimal risk of injury. She commented, –

“I will not stop writing articles until I get all hip-hop dancers away from injury!”

Community Dance alumnus Juan Ignacio Serradilla represented the Atubarukeke Dance Group of Valladolid at the annual inter-university seminar of Body Expression and Dance Groups in Spain. He led a contact workshop at the Zamorano Studies Institute.

Finally, our piano alumni have been giving performances around the globe. Postgraduate piano alumnus Bernardo Santos gave a piano recital with the Chamber Orchestra of Amazonas at Teatro Amazonas in Manaus, Brazil and Zina Asfour performed at the American University of Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, showcasing her latest project Tricoter. Inspired by colourful Oriental fabrics, the work brings together Western and Arabic influences, from Classical to Levantine and Andalusian.

 

DON’T MISS . . .

Cellist and Composition alumnus Ayanna Witter-Johnson released a new single, Nothing Less, on International Women’s Day in advance of her debut album Road Runner, set for release FRI 26 APR.

SUN 28 APR 19.30h
Road Runner Revealed
Omnibus Theatre, London, SW4 0QW

 

Second year student Jake Allen has won this year’s composition prize.

The atmospheric Brunel Museum in Rotherhithe – housed in an underground Thames Tunnel Engine House designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel in 1825 – came alive with the sounds of Trinity Laban students’ brand-new works on Wednesday 27 March for the annual Daryl Runswick Competition.

Named after a former Head of Composition at Trinity Laban, the competition is one of the Conservatoire’s premier prizes and sees Trinity Laban Contemporary Music Group perform students’ compositions directed by Gregory Rose.

This year, the competition was adjudicated by award-winning British composer Freya Waley-Cohen, whose music BBC Music Magazine has described as “at once intimate and visionary”.

Speaking at Wednesday’s event, Freya praised the five finalists’ work, commending their individuality and unique voices, before naming undergraduate composer Jake Allen the overall winner for Teeth Too Big to Floss.

On awarding the prize, Freya described Jake’s piece as “extremely characterful, with great moments of counterpoint and a driving momentum throughout, and with a good use of space.”

On winning this year’s competition, Jake comments –

“I’m very grateful for the opportunity to have my work performed, especially in such a unique venue. Studying composition at Trinity Laban has given me the skills to write and orchestrate for larger ensembles, as well as providing opportunities to hear my music being work-shopped and performed. Feedback received from tutors and performers at Trinity Laban throughout the Daryl Runswick Competition has been vital to the progression of my piece and I’ve learnt a lot through the process. “

Trinity Laban’s Head of Composition Dominic Murcott commented –

“This year’s Daryl Runswick Competition was one of the best: a perfectly eccentric location, which sounded great, a large audience, and an excellent Contemporary Music Group led by Gregory Rose, who brought immense experience and generosity. All five pieces were of an incredible standard – a testament to the creativity and flair within the Composition Department at Trinity Laban.”

Alongside Jake, the other four finalists were postgraduate student Dominic Veall, and second-year composition students Morgan Burroughs, Anastasios Antoniou, and Samantha Carr.

As London’s Creative Conservatoire, Trinity Laban provides a playground for the creative mind where experimentation combines with technical excellence.

Learn more about the Composition Department on our study pages.

 

Lead image: Trinity Laban Contemporary Music Group (credit: Lidia Crisafulli), text image: Jake Allen

Third year Trinity Laban student Hannah Connor has made it through to the Category Finals of BBC Young Dancer 2019, the prestitious biennial dance competition that is open to dancers aged 16-21 from across the UK.

Having triumphed in the two preliminary rounds of the competition, the Contemporary Category Final sees Hannah compete in the in front of a panel of industry experts comprising choreographer and former Artistic Director of Scottish Dance Theatre Fleur Darkin, choreographer and Artistic Co-Director of Candoco Dance Company Ben Wright, and Spoken Word Artist and Artistic Director of Jonzi D Projects and Breakin’ Convention, Jonzi D.

The Category Final will be broadcast on BBC Four on Friday 26 April, including behind-the-scenes footage showing Hannah’s preparations for the competition.

Undergraduate student Hannah originally applied for BBC Young Dance in 2015. Now, following three years of specialist higher education training, Hannah is back to showcase her technical and choreographic skills.

Hannah comments –

“I am so excited and grateful to have gotten to this stage of BBC Young Dancer and am looking forward to showcasing the hard work I have put in over the past few months. I have had amazing support from Trinity Laban in preparing for the competition, working with Sara Matthews (Director of Dance) and Ellen van Schuylenburch (Dance Lecturer), along with building my strength for performance in the fitness suite with Khyle Eccles (Strength & Conditioning specialist from Trinity Laban’s Dance Science Department), and working closely with in-house Costume Designer Suzie Holmes to curate bespoke costumes for the performance. I hope to show my versatility as an artist that has been refined during my three years of contemporary training at Trinity Laban.”

Trinity Laban’s Director of Dance Sara Matthews comments –

“Working with Hannah throughout her preparations for BBC Young Dancer has been such a great joy for me. She is immensely hardworking and dedicated, a wonderful person to spend time with and, of course, an exceptionally talented dancer with a very bright future. I’m so thrilled that her success in this competition means that TV audiences will be able to discover all of this for themselves!”

Hannah is currently completing Trinity Laban’s internationally renowned BA (Hons) Contemporary Dance. Our final audition for 2019 entry to this programme on Sat 27 April. To find out more visit our dance auditions page.

Image: Hannah Connor (credit: Tas Kyprianou)

Principal Anthony Bowne receives Lifetime Achievement Award, whilst flagship venue Blackheath Halls, and jazz professor Byron Wallen win awards for Arts and Entertainment.

The Civic Awards, presented every year by the Royal Borough of Greenwich, are based on public nominations and give the local community an opportunity to celebrate people and organisations who make a difference.

The Lifetime Achievement Award is presented to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the borough over at least twenty years, and this year it was presented to Trinity Laban Principal Anthony Bowne for his hard-work and dedication.

As Director of Laban (2003-2005), Anthony played a key role in the 2005 merger with Trinity College of Music, which formed Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, the largest of the conservatoires in UK higher education. He has served as its Principal since 2010, guiding the conservatoire’s growth and strategy.

On receiving the award, Principal Anthony Bowne comments –

“I was surprised and delighted to receive this Lifetime Achievement Award. I am so proud of the significant contribution the students and staff of both Trinity Laban and Blackheath Halls make to cultural life in Greenwich through our performance programmes, Saturday schools, and our learning and participation work with local schools and in hospitals. As an internationally celebrated centre of excellence, offering world-class training in dance, music and musical theatre, we are committed to providing the wider community with a broad-range of opportunities to engage with the arts, and I look forward to continuing to support this in my role as Trinity Laban Principal, and as Chair of Blackheath Halls.”

Anthony is also the Chair of Blackheath Halls, which received an Arts and Entertainment Award at the ceremony at Woolwich Town Hall on Friday 22 March.

Presented by Mayor of the Royal Borough of Greenwich, Christine May, the award marks Blackheath Halls’ extraordinary contribution to the cultural landscape of South East London. In particular, the positive impact of the £3million renovation, the longstanding Blackheath Halls Community Opera, and the recent Breaking Barriers festival – a weekend of activity for all ages that celebrated 100 years of votes for women and engaged a total of 650 audience members and 101 workshop participants and community performers.

Director of Blackheath Halls Gemma Okell comments –

“We are honoured to receive this award, in recognition of Blackheath Halls’ contribution to the local community. Having recently re-opened after major refurbishment to the building, we are more enthusiastic than ever about bringing people together to enjoy shared artistic experiences. Our summer programme features a diverse range of events, including performances by professional artists, Trinity Laban students, and our acclaimed community opera, which this year will be Offenbach’s comic masterpiece La Belle Helene.”

Also honoured with an Arts and Entertainment award was MOBO nominated trumpeter and composer Byron Wallen, who joined Trinity Laban’s thriving jazz department as a professor earlier this year.

To find out more about upcoming events, visit Blackheath Halls’ pages.

For more information on studying at Trinity Laban, visit our Study pages.

 

Image L-R: Christine May, Anthony Bowne, Danny Thorpe (credit: Brian Aldrich)

 

Nicholas Morrish is one of seven composers who will participate in Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra’s National Composers Intensive (NCI) 2019.

Since 2015, the LA Phil’s NCI has brought together contemporary composers aged 18-30 in order to support new music from conception to performance. Over the next four months, prize-winning composer Nicholas will work with LA Phil’s programme director Andrew Norman and composer Ashley Fure to write and workshop a five to six minute piece.

Andrew Norman commented –

“We seek composers who will push themselves artistically and take risks, and I’m excited to say the 2019 NCI composers exemplify those qualities while representing a diverse spectrum of musical backgrounds and styles.”

The LA Phil, now in its centennial year, is collaborating for the first time with the New York City-based International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE) who will perform the new works. ICE is a trailblazing artist collective championing works by emerging composers. Musicologist Alex Ross has called them ‘America’s foremost new-music group’.

ICE Co-Artistic Directors Rebekah Heller and Ross Karre will be rehearsing and refining the pieces with the participants this month in New York. They will then reconvene in Los Angeles in May for further rehearsals, affording NCI participants the chance to work in two major American cities on opposite coasts, each vibrant centres of contemporary music.

The new works will be performed on 1 JUN at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles during the LA Phil’s Noon to Midnight new music festival.

Since graduating from Trinity Laban in 2013, Nicholas has gone on to become a fellow at Harvard University and has had works performed at festivals across Europe. As the current Mendelssohn Scholarship holder, his recent work has combined sound, electronics and video to explore the concept of music as an expression of time.

 

Trinity Laban is London’s Creative Conservatoire: an internationally celebrated centre of excellence, offering world-class training that transforms those with potential into resourceful, enterprising and adaptable artistic leaders.

Find out more about composition at Trinity Laban by visiting our department pages.

Dancer Cameron Everitt joins Sir Matthew Bourne’s award-winning dance company for international tour of iconic Swan Lake.

Recent graduate Cameron Everitt was on holiday when he got the call offering him his dream job: a contract with New Adventures for their UK and international tour of Swan Lake. The legendary production is a passionate, contemporary interpretation of Tchaikovsky’s beloved tale that has earned over 30 international accolades including an Olivier and three Tony Awards.

“From watching on YouTube to being in it is so surreal,” explains Cameron on the first step in what will surely be a stellar career. “It’s everything and more than I expected it to be.”

 

Ever since studying Bourne’s work as part of GCSE Dance, Cameron has known that he wanted to dance with the company that “tells expressive and theatrically beautiful stories”. So, when the invitation came, he flew straight back to London and into rehearsals at renowned dance venue Sadler’s Wells before making his on stage debut with New Adventures as Swan 8 on 22 January.

Cameron is now performing with the company at regional venues throughout the UK. Later this year he will travel further afield, getting the chance to perform at Bunkamura Orchard Hall in Tokyo, Japan.

But this is not Cameron’s first brush with New Adventures. Whilst in his second year of training at Trinity Laban, Cameron performed the lead role of James in an extract from Act Two of Bourne’s Highland Fling (1994), a ‘romantic wee ballet’ based on the classic La Sylphide, and worked directly with New Adventures resident artist Kerry Biggin.

The excerpt formed part of the annual BA2 Historical Project, where students recreate timeless works by some of contemporary dance’s most pioneering and admired choreographers, learning directly from company artists.

“Restaging Highland Fling really got my foot in the door,” says Cameron. “I chose to train at Trinity Laban because of their links with Sir Matthew Bourne OBE and New Adventures.”

Sir Matthew Bourne completed his BA at Trinity Laban before going on to dance with Transitions Dance Company, and has previously described his experience with Transitions as a direct influence on creating New Adventures.

On his time at Trinity Laban Cameron continues, “Doing a mix of ballet, contemporary, and release makes you adaptable to any job. I can pick up new things quickly and am free to adapt, not stuck in one specific style or genre.

“I was so nervous coming in to New Adventures, but they made me feel so welcome. It’s a lovely company to work for. The choreography is so fun and exciting. There’s always something new to find and experience. I want to do this every day.”

Cameron joins fellow Trinity Laban alumnus Jack Parry in Swan Lake, whilst current students Kayleigh Oborka-Letman and Ashton Hall who are appearing in Bourne’s new production of Romeo and Juliet.

Full information and tour dates can be found on the New Adventures website.

All four students are studying or have studied on Trinity Laban’s internationally renowned BA (Hons) Contemporary Dance. We would like to invite you to our final audition for 2019 entry to this programme on Sat 27 April. To find out more visit our dance auditions page.

–

Main image: Cameron Everitt, Historical Project 2016 (credit: Lidia Crisafulli)

In text image: Cameron Everitt in Swan Lake (2019)

 

 

From virtual reality to adolescent abandon, Trinity Laban hosts two acclaimed international dance companies this March, showcasing the best of contemporary dance work being created in Europe.

One of Poland’s most innovative and experimental dance companies, Polish Dance Theatre is known for the interdisciplinary theatre and unique choreography which has attracted universal praise. On 14 and 15 March the company will present a rare UK performance of their thought-provoking Forefather’s Eve_copy.doc. 

Inspired by Polish Romantic writer Adam Mickiewicz’s narrative poem Forefathers’ Eve, and American sci-fi writer William Gibson’s Sprawl Trilogy, the work combines dance, medicine and futuristic technology in a modern reflection on the ideas of ritual and mortality.

Following sell-out shows across the UK, Scotland’s national contemporary dance company Scottish Dance Theatre brings Fleur Darkin’s fantastically edgy and sensuous Velvet Petal to London on 20 and 21 March. 

Set to a fresh dance-punk score, and inspired by Patti Smith’s memoir Just Kids which documents her relationship with controversial American photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, this is an homage to the punk era transplanted into the 21st century.

The whimsical and energetic work, which has drawn rave reviews from the likes of The Stage and The Guardian, has become one of the company’s most iconic pieces and showcases their exceptionally talented troupe of dancers.

Choreographer Fleur Darkin comments –

“Velvet Petal is about change – how humans change by themselves or through relationships with others. It’s about those times in your life when you must transform yourself. I spent a lot of time researching the photographic process and the Polaroids of Robert Mapplethorpe, which inspired me to see things in a new way. We think we understand at first glance but actually, it’s when we spend time letting the object communicate with us that the magic happens.”

Experience both seminal works this spring with Trinity Laban’s 2 for £20 ticket offer. To redeem the offer, simply use the code SPRING20 when booking online.

–

Polish Dance Theatre: Forefather’s Eve_Copy.Doc

19.30h | THU 14 & FRI 15 MAR | Laban Theatre
Age guidance 16+ (contains nudity)

 Scottish Dance Theatre: Velvet Petal

19.30h | WED 20 & THU 21 MAR | Laban Theatre
Age guidance recommended 12+  

 –

Images L-R: Forefather’s Eve_copy.doc Polish Dance Theatre, Velvet Petal Scottish Dance Theatre

Our monthly round-up of some of the successes for Trinity Laban alumni.

February saw an impressive array of new album releases from our alumni.

Composition alumnus Cassie Kinoshi released her debut album Driftglass with ten-piece group SEED Ensemble earlier this month on the Jazz re:Freshed label. The album was launched with an event at Kings Place that featured live performances from the band as well as DJ sets. SEED Ensemble includes alumni Joe Armon-Jones (keyboards), Chelsea Carmichael (saxophone) and Sheila Maurice-Grey (trumpet). Guest vocalist Cherise Adams-Burnett appears on two of the album’s tracks.

The new album includes a recording of Kinoshi’s composition Afronaut which won a BASCA British Composer award in December 2018.

Emmy award-winning composer, pianist and conductor Gavin Greenaway released Woven, ‘a love letter to the vinyl LP’. Hans Zimmer commented –

“A new album by my favourite composer! Beautiful music, beautifully performed. Gracious and elegant melodies draw you into a world all of its own. You’ll never want to leave.”

Greenaway has conducted over one hundred feature film and television soundtracks and produced and written for chart-topping artists including Bryan Adams, Daft Punk, George Michael and Sir Paul McCartney. His piece Reflections of Earth was played every night for 20 years to accompany the fireworks display at Disneyworld, Florida.

Peruvian guitarist and composer Andrés Prado released his new digital album Barranquino, inspired by the popular Latin American music of the Barranco district, Lima’s artistic hotbed. The album launches the new record label Quinto Pulso.

Cyprus-based Kostas Makrygiannakis released Fragments with Louvana Records this month. Makrygiannakis describes his debut record as a ‘musical mosaic’ as it features original compositions alongside transcriptions of François Couperin pieces, covering everything from French Baroque to Pink Floyd.

February was also a month of successes in award nominations.

Musical Theatre alumnus Ella-Jane Thomas has been nominated for ‘Best Newcomer’ at The Great British Pantomime Awards 2019. She made her professional debut as La Fool in Loughborough’s 2018 Christmas pantomime Beauty and the Beast. The winner will be announced on 28 APR at The New Wimbledon Theatre, London at an event hosted by Christopher Biggins.

The nominations for the 2019 Jazz FM Awards were announced and include a host of Trinity Laban alumni. In the Breakthrough Act category, saxophonist and composer Cassie Kinoshi, trumpeter Emma-Jean Thackray and drummer Moses Boyd were shortlisted.

Steam Down, a weekly music event at Buster Mantis in Deptford run by Wayne Francis (also known as Ahnansé) is up for the Innovation Award and Live Experience of the Year (Public Vote) alongside composer and saxophonist Nubya Garcia. Garcia is also nominated for UK Jazz Act of the Year (Public Vote) alongside keyboard player Joe Armon-Jones.

Saxophonist Camilla George is up for Jazz FM Instrumentalist of the Year and Cherise Adams-Burnett is shortlisted for Vocalist of the Year. Among nominees for Album of the Year (Public Vote) is We Out Here, a compilation album largely comprised of recordings from Trinity Laban’s jazz alumni.

The awards ceremony will take place at Shoreditch Town Hall on 30 APR, International Jazz Day.

Our dance alumni have also been busy making their mark on the industry at home and abroad.

Dancing and choreographing works for Resolution Festival of new choreography at The Place in February were alumni Laura Rouzet, Alice Bonazzi, Wilhelmina Ojanen, Miia Mäkilä, Coral Montejano Cantoral and Alex Miklosy with an original score by composition alumnus Andrew Marriot. Also at The Place, Leila McMillan’s new work Honey, created in collaboration with students from London Contemporary Dance School was premiered.

The early February inauguration of Poland’s new Tanca Art Centre in Warsaw featured a solo contemporary dance performance by alumnus Liwia Bargieł. She performed her piece BODY BANK which attempts to deform the body and change its form, creating a sense of strangeness for the audience. Bargieł is a lecturer at the Aleksander Zelwerowicz Theatre Academy in Warsaw.

Robbie Synge’s latest project Ensemble is a collaboration with choreographer Lucy Boyes and three performers in their sixties and seventies. It presents the strengths and weaknesses in the performers to try to answer the questions of what we are physically capable of, what we aren’t and whether it matters. The piece is ‘a political challenge to an ageing society and to the performing arts sector regarding the visibility, voice and profile of older people.’

Screensaver Series, a work by Janine Harrington that was first performed at Dance Umbrella in October 2018, was presented as part of Sadler’s Wells Sampled. The piece is a kaleidoscopic performance installation with a focus on neurodiversity. It explores the relationships between physical, virtual and abstract movement by emulating the patterns of a computer screensaver.

Also at Sadler’s Wells, dance alumnus Christopher Tandy performed with Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch in the second of their new works, Since She, a dream-like phantasmagoria of contorted and absurd creatures made through an incessant mingling of performers and primal materials.

Choreographer Yukiko Masui has been touring her new work, Falling Family, commissioned by DanceXchange, The Place and Northern School of Contemporary Dance. The piece is a 35-minute ensemble show for 4 dancers, tapping into the conflicted emotional space accessed when encountering a loved one’s illness or death.

Dance alumnus Catherine Nueva España was appointed the new Executive Director of Velocity Dance Center in Seattle, USA where she plans to consolidate a comprehensive diversity, equality and inclusion plan and to strengthen fundraising efforts. Since moving to Seattle two years ago, she has served as Programme Manager for Arts and Development for non-profit organisation 501 Commons, as a grants panellist for the Washington State Arts Commission and as a board member of Khambatta Dance Company / Seattle International Dance Festival.

In Musical Theatre news, Molly Osbourne plays Tzeitl in the Menier Chocolate Factory production of Fiddler On the Roof which is transferring to prime West End venue Playhouse Theatre on 21 MAR.

There have been noteworthy performances from our musical alumni in London and elsewhere.

Alumnus and drummer Shaney Forbes is currently playing in Arthur Miller’s The American Clock – A Vaudeville, at the Old Vic. A series of vignettes, the play follows the lives of one family throughout the 1930s with live musicians setting the scene and propelling the narrative. Writing about the Roosevelt inauguration scene in London Jazz News, Sebastian Scotney commented, “…the regular low thud of Shaney Forbes‘s magnificently metronomic drumming underpinned the scene, as if one was supposed to be feeling the heartbeat of America.”

An American Clock – A Vaudeville runs until 30 MAR.

Swedish Mezzo soprano Katarina Karnéus performed the sole singing part, Representative Women, in Arnold Schoenberg’s rarely-performed one-act monodrama Erwartung (Expectations) with Brno Opera in Czech Republic. An exploration of the human psyche, the piece depicts an unnamed woman who awaits her lover in a wood only to find his dead body.

Composition alumnus Made Kuti appeared on a double-cover feature of digital gazette Pop Culture. The grandson of celebrated alumnus Fela Kuti – whose life and music defined the Afrobeat genre – explains how after the former bassist in his father Femi Kuti’s band went missing, he stepped up to fill the role.

Finally, composer and photographer Raughi Ebert is giving an exhibition in Germany of collages combining his draughts of historical automobile designs with classical music scores. He commented –

“I thought about which composers suited which cars. I think Mozart goes well with the Porsche 911 and Bach’s music with the Porsche 356.”

Car Design Meets Music is on display at the Classic Remise in Dusseldorf until the end of March.

 

DON’T MISS

Richard II
FRI 22 FEB – SAT 21 APR
Shakespeare’s Globe, Bankside SE1 9DT

Dance alumnus Yarit Dor is London’s only Israeli female fight director. She is choreographing and performing as a member of the ensemble of actors in The Globe Theatre’s all-women-of-colour production of Shakespeare’s Richard II. Dor is also a co-founder of Intimacy Directors International’s UK branch, choreographing safe, consenting scenes of intimacy in theatre, film and television, in the backlash of the #MeToo movement.

Dance artists Artémise Ploegaerts, Rob McNeill and Irina Baldini will present work at the inaugural Bite Size Pieces sharing on Saturday 2 March.

Bite Size Pieces is a performance platform at Trinity Laban for dance alumni, offering the opportunity to showcase new work – both finished and in development – with professional tech support and receive peer feedback.

The scheme launches this weekend (2 March 19.30h) with the first trio of alumni sharing pieces in the Laban Building’s Studio Theatre.

Dancer, choreographer and curator Irina Baldini (BA (Hons) Dance Theatre, 2010) presents IN THE EVENT OF, a work that explores the relationship between visceral and intellectual approaches to events with sound design by H.a. van Hees.

Performer, choreographer, curator, and former Punchdrunk Theatre Company member, Rob McNeill (BA (Hons) Dance Theatre, 2003) has devised Towards an Ensemble in collaboration with students from E15 Acting School. The work-in-progress is a sketch of a roaming site responsive work for outdoor spaces that will incorporate mobile technology for light and score.

In her solo work Dis-Figuring-Me-Out, choreographer, dancer and video artist Artémise Ploegaerts (BA (Hons) Dance Theatre, 2011) connects femininity with personal memory and mass culture, focusing on the way in which stereotypes about femininity and cultural norms shape the female body.

After each presentation Tony Thatcher (MA Choreographer Programme Leader), Lizzi Kew Ross (Artistic Director of Lizzi Kew Ross & Co and Lecturer in Choreography at Trinity Laban) and Charles Linehan (previously Choreographer in Residence at The Place, now Reader in Choreography at Trinity Laban) will guide a Q&A with the artist. All three choreographers have experience working with young artists and have previously been involved in The Artistic Practice Forum at Trinity Laban, which provided peer support for artists’ creative practice.

The evening’s performance will be followed by a free drinks reception, giving both the audience and the artists a chance to socialise and engage in further discussions about the works.

Bite Size Pieces
19.30h | SAT 2 MAR | Studio Theatre, Laban Building, SE8 3DZ
Admission Free

Future performance opportunities are anticipated in the next academic year. To register interest or apply, please email Lucy Nicholson (Communications and Alumni Relations Manager) at alumni@trinitylaban.ac.uk.

Trinity Laban is London’s Creative Conservatoire: an internationally celebrated centre of excellence, transforming those with potential into resourceful, enterprising and adaptable artistic leaders. To find out more, visit our study pages.

 

London’s Creative Conservatoire continues to build international relationships through collaborative performance project at the British Council’s SPARK festival.

Ahead of CoLab 2019 – Trinity Laban’s annual festival of collaboration – Head of CoLab Joe Townsend and Director of Dance Sara Matthews travelled to Hong Kong for British Council’s festival SPARK: The Science and Art of Creativity.

Working at the cross-over of art and science, the Trinity Laban mentors collaborated with dance and music students from the Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts (HK APA) to create CoLab Journeys, a 17-minute semi-improvised, immersive performance that combined original movement and sound.

The week-long visit culminated in six outdoor public performances at the Old Parade Ground of Tai Kwun Centre for Heritage and Arts, with Director of the British Council Hong Kong Jeff Streeter calling the collaboration “one of the highlights of the festival”.

HK APA dance student Natalie commented –

“I really appreciate the opportunity to take part in the SPARK project. The performances were so playful and challenging at the same time. I found it really refreshing to do something different to what I am used to doing. I enjoyed improvising, experimenting with different approaches, and connecting with the audience, who were also part of the performance.”

Fellow participant Evelyn Lee Wai Yan commented –

“Working outside my comfort zone has enable me to become more confident, and I enjoyed the processes of exchanging ideas and getting to know other artists. Although we have done the performance, this is only the beginning.”

As London’s Creative Conservatoire, Trinity Laban is a leader in creative performance learning and teaching. CoLab Journeys forms part of a wider initiative that sees Trinity Laban working with international creative partners to develop cross-arts collaboration and to further explore artistic practice.

This year, Trinity Laban welcomes National Taiwan University of Arts and University of Southern California to take part in five CoLab 2019 projects. To find out more, visit our CoLab pages or join us for CoLab Proms Party Friday 22 February.

(Image credit: ATUM)

Trinity Laban is delighted to announce it will receive further financial support from the Leverhulme Trust to support students across its Music and Dance Faculties over the next three years.

Designed to help talented individuals realise their potential through research and education, the Leverhulme Arts Scholarships at Trinity Laban enable young musicians to take part in Junior Trinity (our Saturday music department for 3-19 year olds), support young dancers at our Centre for Advanced Training, and provide opportunities for music and dance students to pursue postgraduate studies.

Over the past twenty years, the Trust has also supported Trinity Laban’s ground-breaking research into talent development and performance optimisation. 

Leverhulme Arts Scholar 2017/18 Valentina Ciardelli, now Trinity Laban Carne Trust Junior Fellow 2018/19, comments –

“The financial support from the Leverhulme Trust gave me the chance to move forward with my career and study in London with my teacher, Leon Bosch, who has worked with me to help me discover the musician I want to become.”

Leverhulme Arts Scholar 2010/11 Yukiko Masui completed an MA/MFA Dance Performance at Trinity Laban, is a 2018 Choreodrome Artist at The Place and was awarded the 2017 DanceXchange Choreography Award. The Tokyo-born dancer and choreographer comments –

 “As an overseas student, the Leverhulme Arts Scholarship was a huge financial support and enabled me to be part of Transitions Dance Company. I really appreciate the opportunity to learn so much.”

Established in 1925, the Leverhulme Trust has provided funding for research projects, fellowships, studentships, bursaries and prizes and operates across all the academic disciplines. With annual funding of some £60 million, the Trust is amongst the largest all-subject providers of research funding in the UK.

Trinity Laban’s Development Manager Paula Mallottides comments –

“We are very proud and grateful of our longstanding relationship with the Leverhulme Trust, which has and continues to, through the Leverhulme Arts Scholarships, transform the fortunes of the next generation of highly gifted music and dance students who have the artistic flair and innate ability to benefit from our specialist conservatoire training.” 

Trinity Laban is London’s Creative Conservatoire: an internationally celebrated centre of excellence, offering world-class training in dance, music and musical theatre, and is committed to supporting and developing a diverse intake of talented performers and creators. Learn more by visiting our study pages.