The Place

Over the summer, we've had the pleasure of working together with Greek National Opera to bring Requardt & Rosenberg's extraordinary work Future Cargo on a summer tour across eleven towns and cities in Greece, from Paros, Naxos, and Syros to Kalamata, Sparta, Astros, Nafplio, Xylokastro, Tripoli, Pylos, and Ancient Olympia.    This innovative new co-production, supported by producers Third Version Creative and made possible through generous support from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF), used the set, props and equipment from the UK - a bespoke shipping container containing a travellator and a set of alien costumes - with a company of dancers from the Greek National Ballet.   The creative and production team from the UK handed over the production to the team in Greece in order to give the show a new, sustainable, touring life, without the need for the full company to travel from the UK. In this way, The Place and Requardt & Rosenberg are exploring new ways to keep a successful show on tour, whilst minimising the touring footprint.   In a post-Brexit environment where artistic collaboration between the UK and Europe faces new complexities, this co-production of Future Cargo stands as both an act of creative vision and cultural resilience. In an environment often wary of risk, this new model champions innovation by centering trust, artistry, and sustainable infrastructure. In Future Cargo, we witness genuine artistic collaboration - a fusion of British creativity and Greek talent, UK institutions and Greek leadership, philanthropic backing and local execution. This isn't conventional touring. It is a model firmly rooted in generosity, innovation, and adaptability. When borders tighten, art must remain fluid. When traditional routes close, we must imagine new pathways. Future Cargo is both a triumph of design and a symbol of possibility.

The Place is delighted to announce the appointment of four new trustees to its Board of Governors: Molly Jackson, Professor Susan Orr, Antony Kingston, and James Sanderson, CEO at Sue Ryder. Joining the Board on 1 September 2025 for an initial three-year term, our new trustees bring a wealth of expertise in finance, higher education leadership, capital development, and healthcare. These appointments respond to the organisation's changing needs and the upcoming retirement of three long-serving governors. Jane Alexander, Vice-Chair and Chair of the Nominations Committee, says: “It has been a privilege to lead this recruitment process and to welcome such an exceptional group of new trustees to The Place. Molly, Antony, James, and Susan stood out for their professional excellence, their thoughtful perspectives, and their clear passion for the arts. I’m confident they will make a powerful contribution to our Board and to The Place’s continued evolution as a dynamic and inclusive home for dance.” Governors at The Place are instrumental in guiding the organisation’s vision, ensuring we continue to grow, innovate, and thrive as a home for pioneering dance and creative talent. The collective experience of our new appointees will play a vital role in shaping the strategic direction of The Place and supporting our mission to deliver bold artistic and educational programmes within a sustainable business framework. https://lnkd.in/euHzFV6H

Last week, we were honoured to welcome Professor Edward Peck, the incoming Chair of the Office for Students (OfS) to The Place. This was his first official visit to a higher education provider since his appointment to the role in May.   It was a pleasure to introduce him to some of the inspiring work taking place at The Place. Professor Peck met students from our Centre for Advanced Training (CAT) programme as they prepared for their upcoming summer performance, observed recent graduate Evie Longstaff developing her first choreographic work through our Propeller Residency, and spoke with our Head of Dance Science Stephanie De'Ath and recent graduate Jack Baron about the support available to students, particularly in relation to physical as well as mental wellbeing.   We were proud to share the creativity, talent and care that define our learning community and very grateful for the opportunity to engage in meaningful dialogue about the future of higher education in the arts.

Every year for the summer months, we open our studios for artist residencies, to create new work and research new ideas. For the second year now, four additional residencies are offered to recent graduates (who just graduated this summer 2025) as part of a suite of new Propeller projects, designed to give recent graduates a lift to kickstart their creative careers in the crucial time period straight after graduation. The four graduates this year are Evie Longstaff, Company Sixth (Becca Dodd & Elina Wates), Ty Burrows and Lilah Bobak. They will each receive £2.5k and 2 weeks of residency time in our studios to develop a 15–20-minute piece to present at Resolution 2026. Find out more about these emerging dance artists here https://lnkd.in/eBXiu4_t

Today, as we celebrate the Graduating Class of 2025, we are thrilled to present our Patron Paloma Faith with an Honorary Doctorate from London Contemporary Dance School. An artist with immense creative brilliance, Paloma Faith was taught at the very beginning of her creative journey by Clare Connor, Chief Executive of The Place and London Contemporary Dance School who was then a school teacher, and today remembered a vividly original teenager, already fierce, imaginative and utterly herself. She was a member of the Youth Dance Company based at The Place when she was 11 year old, and today thanked her teachers Clare Connor, Wayne McGregor and Pete Brooke. “Clare was the first person who made me believe I could be whatever I wanted to be.”   With a background in contemporary dance and theatre, and a degree in Fine Arts from Central Saint Martins, University of The Arts London, Paloma Faith is an artist who resists categorisation and whose work spans mediums: singer/songwriter, performer, writer, actor, filmmaker, podcaster – a whole creative ecosystem contained in one deeply expressive individual. “At LCDS, we champion artists who challenge convention, who push their form, speak their truth and help others to find theirs. Paloma Faith is exactly that kind of artist, who continues to inspire, question, connect and lead, and who reminds us that creativity is not just about what we make, but how we shape the world around us.” - Clare Connor Paloma Faith said “Nothing is ever more important than the message. Everything we do has the potential to be art. If you train as a dancer you are an artist – and if you train as an artist, you are a dancer. What matters is the message, and it can take many forms.” -- Image 1 by Henry Curtis Image 2 by In-Press Photography

Congratulations to the class of 2025 who are celebrating their graduation from University of the Arts London today with a ceremony at the iconic Royal Festival Hall. As we send these young artists out to change their world, we asked the artists who worked with them for their advice: Stay playful, stay curious, be adventurous, hold on to who you are and why you started dancing, create your own path, don't be afraid and enjoy every minute! We wish all our graduates all the very best for their future.

Today we host the inaugural symposium of our MA Dance: Participation, Communities, Activism. Launched two years ago, the MA enables a global learning exchange between a community of dance artists working towards social justice and change in their local contexts. The learning community is based in many different countries and thus the symposium seeks to create encounter across time zones – making the impossible, possible. In the last 6 weeks, the first graduating cohort of MA Dance: Participation, Communities, Activism have been doing their final projects. They have explored allyship with the parents of LGBTQIA+ people in Poland; highlighted the resistance and resilience of elders of the Caribbean community in Croydon, London; and excavated embodied memory with women living in Eldorado Park, South Africa. They have shared cake and pleasure activism across generations in London; immersed themselves in the Atlantic Forest in Brazil as inspiration for a collective dance; explored child-led dancing and parenting in Mexico; and practiced for democracy with teenagers in Germany.  The second cohort of students share creative documentations of their international collaborations. The Curatorial Team, who lead the course, offer invitations to move, make and reflect together. Invited academics with related research in protest, eco-somatic practice, speculative futures, and conceptual practices in dance, will engage in deep listening and respond to the student’s research. To persist is to remain steadfast in the face of opposition, to continue to dance in-spite of it all. If you are feeling persistent spend twelve hours, or visit for an hour or two. You can access all symposium events with this link: https://lnkd.in/edXMSkP5

This week, we hosted the Camden Partner Schools Festival, where 400 young dancers perform on our stage here at The Place. We watched seven wonderful dances, inspired by curriculum topics created by children from our Partner Schools, under guidance from dance artists and with support of the schoolteachers. These vibrant dance festivals, managed by the Creative Learning Department here at The Place, are part of our Camden Partner Schools Programme, which proudly turned 9 years old this year. Over nearly a decade, we’ve danced with more than 6,000 children across 25 schools, reaching over half of the primary schools in the borough, one of our original goals for the programme. Each year, this special programme engages over 800 children in a year-long dance journey, not only as dancers, but also as audiences and choreographers. Through this sustained creative work, children build confidence and experience real benefits to their mental and physical wellbeing. It was a joy to celebrate this milestone this week, surrounded by families, teachers, and our amazing funders John Lyon's Foundation who make it all possible. Thank you to everyone who has been part of this journey, and here’s to even more dancing in Camden and beyond!

Applications are now open for Resolution 2026 The Place's flagship festival continues its role as a leading platform for new choreography and performance. We are looking for short, live works to be performed as part of a triple-bill in our theatre between 9 January and 25 February next year. We welcome diverse performance styles including dance, dance theatre, physical theatre, hip hop, South Asian dance, circus, live art, and performance art. The most important element is the quality of the idea and artistic vision. Selected artists will present their work to an audience of peers, professionals and critics, while participating in supportive artist development workshops designed to enhance their creative practice. Resolution exists to champion new ideas, embrace artistic risks, and provide a vital platform for artists to create and realise their most compelling work. Applications close Friday 22 August: https://lnkd.in/dCmyTYsb

Tonight, the graduating students of our BA (Hons) Contemporary Dance programme at London Contemporary Dance School take to the stage at The Place one last time before stepping out into the world as emerging dance artists - the culmination of our students' three-year artistic and academic journey. This year's line-up of choreographers who have worked with our graduating class is truly exceptional: Joseph Toonga – award-winning choreographer and current Choreographic Residency artist at the Royal Ballet Lea Tirabasso – internationally acclaimed choreographer Monique Jonas – known for her work with Rambert, Richard Alston Dance Company, and Matthew Bourne Ekleido – the dynamic duo recently nominated for a National Dance Award What makes this group of guest artists especially meaningful to us is that each one is an LCDS alum themselves - a testament to how our graduates are not only shaping the field but leading it. We are live streaming the final performance of our Graduation Show - join us in celebrating the next generation of artists who will soon be making their mark on the industry: https://lnkd.in/eJrUNFK7