News

An exclusively virtual season provides opportunities for performers, creators and audiences to encounter dance and music in innovative ways.

As a conservatoire, it is important for us to continue to create platforms for performance and enable creativity to thrive.

Building on the success of #SelfIsolationCreation, the Conservatoire’s upcoming music and dance performances will be exclusively virtual this summer, with events premiering on our YouTube channel and across social media platforms.

DANCE

In a virtual edition of Dance Legends: Historical Project, second-year undergraduates recreate and reimagine significant major works by prolific contemporary choreographers including Lea Anderson, and Yvonne Rainer (led by Sara Wookey). The full-length performance premieres on 9 July at 17.00.

In July Transitions Dance Company present a film-version of their brand-new triple bill. Recorded during a preview performance on the Laban Theatre stage before lockdown, the three pieces range from graceful precision to the wry and mischievous. The works were specially choreographed by dance artist and movement director Cameron McMillan, award-winning Scandinavian choreographer/performer duo H2DANCE, and Italian choreographer and dance educator Elisa Pagani for the company’s annual international tour. Premiering on TL’s YouTube channel, the performance of short, innovative dance works will available for a limited time.

In June, our third-year dance students began a digital version of Commissioned Works, a key module that sees them working with dance artists Gary Lambert, Freddie Opoku-Addaie and Stephanie Schober to create new pieces. The results of this project will be shared later in July.

Responding to the experience of lockdown in his hometown of La Paz, multidisciplinary Bolivian artist and TL alum Mateo Dupleich Rozo has created experimental short-film hola casita (hello little house) which welcomes the viewer into moments of intimacy between his home and its inhabitants.

“The film is a poetic registry of the interactions that happen in this territory defined by the walls of a house, framing diverse kinds of life and movement that compose the kind of living that a house is. I am extremely motivated to share this film to support dancers and non-dancers to rediscover their curiosities.” – Mateo

The film premieres on 13 Aug at 17.00.

MUSIC

Offering tasters of what’s to come when New Lights Festival returns to its full live format in 2021, Preludes to New Lights brings seven days of exciting preludes, previews and postludes from Mon 6 – Sun 12 July. Highlights include the world premiere of Fifth Political Agenda, a new piece by Michael Finnissy written especially for postgraduate piano student Annie Li, and a first preview of Sonatina Nostalgica by Stephen Hough,written for and performed by pianist Philip Fowke.

Separated by geography, but united as a community in music, TL piano students all over the world have come together using whatever instruments and recording equipment they had to hand to perform J.S Bach’s entire 48 Preludes and Fugues. Enjoy six releases each Monday from 13 July as part of The Well-Tempered Lockdown.

In collaboration with University of Graz, our Piano and Keyboard Department presents The Art of Fugue on 23 July. The 90-minute performance sees staff, students and alumni unite to create a unique digital version of Johann Sebastian Bach’s famous instrumental work.

Other upcoming events include:

• Duet for One, a unique challenge in which 15 String Department students perform duets with themselves ranging from Faure to Bartok
• highlights from Joaquín Achúcarro’s recent masterclass
• From My Room Orchestra’s performance of Company by Philip Glass
• end of term highlight concerts from our Vocal and Wind Brass and Percussion departments.

TAKE PART

It’s not just students, staff and alumni who are performing this summer. From light-touch, bite-sized dance activities to deep-dives into the listening experience, Take Part at Home offers a wealth of bespoke music and dance resources and activities for Trinity Laban’s wider community to explore.

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Find out more about the digital season by visiting the #SelfIsolationCreation page.

Image credit: Belinda Lawley