Dance

Dancer, choreographer and director, Carlos Acosta, and the Acosta Dance Foundation (ADF) have announced the launch of a new dance centre, due to open in September.

The Acosta Dance Centre will be based in London’s Woolwich Works and will offer dance classes, courses, performances, residencies and programmes for locals in the Greenwich area and beyond. 

It will also serve as a gathering place and artistic space for dancers, industry professionals and the community, the foundation said, predicting that it will impact 215,000 people.

The centre will focus on educational and community-based activities involving local schools, public dance classes and Acosta Ballet Camps that provide intensive training for young ballet dancers.

It will also serve as the home of the Carlos Acosta Choreographic Fellowship and a residency programme for artists to collaborate and explore cross-cultural projects, as well as the Acosta Advanced Training Hub, a free pre-professional programme for students aged 18 and above.

“The Acosta Dance Centre stands as the epitome of my life’s work, representing a global sanctuary for dancers of all backgrounds and a beacon of inspiration for the world of dance,” Acosta said. 

“It is a dream come true, born from my passion to create a place where dance could bring people from all walks of life together, to celebrate joy and creativity through movement.”

The Royal Ballet School has launched a digital membership programme to widen access for those wanting to support its operation.

The school is offering memberships of £65 a year - or £45 for Young Members - extending the options for support to young philanthropists or those based overseas.

The new programme is part of a push to raise funds vital to ensuring the organisation’s survival. Funding from the Department of Education has remained at a standstill while running costs have risen, the school said, leaving a shortfall that requires it to raise over £1m in donations annually.

Members and Young Members will be offered exclusive behind-the-scenes access to ballet classes via Zoom, a bi-monthly newsletter with photos, videos and stories, and discounts on Royal Ballet School shop and video-on-demand products. 

The funds raised will contribute to the school’s General Fund, which is used to cover the running costs of its studios, facilities and accommodation, to fund healthcare provision, to pay salaries and to maintain its historic buildings.

A series of artist development initiatives focused on practice rather than performance-based outcomes have been launched by Sadler’s Wells.

The initiatives include artist-led programmes, a mentoring scheme and programmes for South Asian dance practitioners and disabled artists.

The mentoring programme will see 10 early-career choreographers or dance artists paired with an established choreographer from the Sadler’s Wells network to explore a specific creative question, provocation or idea.

The South Asian Dance Development Programme is a two-year programme for emerging choreographers whose practice is based in a South Asian dance style. It will be delivered in partnership with Akademi and take place through a range of creative exchanges, skills sharing, peer-led learning and mentoring support.

The Disabled Artist Programme is a rolling programme focused on practice development opportunities for disabled artists. Participants will be invited to join a practice-based session each month, collaborating with artists who have worked on Sadler’s Wells’ stages. 

And Sadler’s Wells Time and Space Commissions will offer three more established choreographers £7,000, studio space and producing support, with “no pressure to deliver a production at the end of the process”. 

Sadler’s Wells Associate Artistic Director Rob Jones, who devised the initiatives, said: “We want these programmes to be spaces where we can have a consistent dialogue with developing choreographers and dance artists.

“The majority of our programmes are open call outs, and some are targeted in recognition of underserved areas of the dance ecology. These initial strands are focused on holding space for development without the pressure of production-based outcomes.

“We’re really excited to have a different kind of conversation with the dance ecology and this first step will build a strong a foundation for the work Sadler’s Wells is doing to support the future of choreographers and dance artists.” 

A former church in Gateshead is set to become a community and arts hub after restoration plans secured funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

Gateway Studio, a dance and related arts charity, has received £1.4m in funding. The money will be used to acquire and restore the Trinity Centre, a Grade I-listed former church located on Gateshead High Street, one of town’s oldest sites.

Plans for the development of the building include the creation of studio perfromance space for open mic nights, acoustic sets and art exhibitions to showcase local talent, as well as office accommodation and a café.

Renovations are scheduled to be completed by September 2024.

“Dance and the arts are powerful tools in transforming individuals and communities,” Martin Hylton, Founder and Chief Executive of Gateway Studio, told the BBC.

“This new development will not only put Gateshead firmly on the map, in terms of developing and supporting professional artists, but will also help to transform the local community.”

Angela Douglas, Gateshead Council's Cabinet Member for Culture, Sport and Leisure, said the new arts space was “an exciting and ambitious project”.

“As one of our only dedicated dance spaces in the borough, I'm sure the regeneration of the Trinity Centre will unlock their full potential,” she said.

A drama school in Reading has warned that it will be forced to close by the end of the year if it cannot raise sufficient funds within the next 10 days.

In a statement published on its website, READ College, which has been operating for 15 years, said it is in financial trouble "due to the relentless cost-of-living crisis, our continuous recovery from Covid and the loss of our ability to host international students".

"READ College is facing a critical time," the statement said. 

"We have seen businesses and colleges close around us due to the rise in the cost of living and soaring energy prices, the nation is struggling and we now find ourselves in an unsustainable financial position."

It said that if sufficient funds are not raised by 12 December there will be "no choice but to close our doors at the end of this term".

It has launched a #SaveREADCollege campaign and is asking people to donate online.

Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG) and football team Tottenham Hotspur will work together to improve theatre engagement in young people in the London Borough of Haringey, it has been announced.

The organisations are launching West End in Tottenham, a series of workshops for young people aged 11-18 years old that plan to “celebrate London’s arts and culture and put the voices of N17 centre stage”.

Workshops range from physicality and movement to beatboxing and hip-hop, with participants also invited to attend a West End stage show.

The sessions will take place at the London Academy of Excellence on the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium campus throughout the current school term.

Tottenham Hotspur Executive Director Donna-Maria Cullen said dreams of being on stage can “seem so distant” for young people in the neighbourhood.

“West End In Tottenham can change that and open the eyes of Tottenham teenagers to the world of performing arts through a series of engaging and inspiring workshops, held right here on our stadium campus,” she added.

Sessions are available to book here.