Granted further support for the two years ahead from the Department for Education and Arts Council England, National Youth Dance Company, run by Sadler’s Wells, will work with choreographer Botis Seva as the next Guest Artistic Director of the company.
NYDC has begun its search for the next intake of 30 young dancers to work with Seva to create a new dance production, with 'Experience Workshops' taking place across England from May to July.
Seva, a dance artist, choreographer and director working within contemporary dance, physical theatre and hip-hop, will take over from Israeli choreographer and Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist Sharon Eyal. Used To Be Blonde, Eyal’s production with the National Youth Dance Company, premiered at Sadler’s Wells earlier this month and performs across England this summer as part of a UK tour.
Seva and his collective, Far From the Norm, have previously performed at Sadler’s Wells with Breakin’ Convention and curated a Wild Card evening in the Lilian Baylis Studio. In October, he will be in Reckonings, a new commission by Sadler’s Wells to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the current theatre, alongside UK based dance-makers Julie Cunningham and Alesandra Seutin.
He said, “I look forward to sharing my passion for dance with these young performers, and having the opportunity to challenge my own dance language whilst I am Guest Artistic Director. Having the chance to work with NYDC has always been on my bucket list, and I hope with the support of Sadler’s Wells this experience will truly push me as an artist.”
NYDC runs additional projects that support dance in communities across the country. Current members will visit Falmouth in May for a residency with local young dancers who are a part of Propeller and Hall for Cornwall Youth Dance, culminating in a large-scale outdoor performance at the Eden Project in July.
Also, NYDC recently partnered with Corali Dance Company to create a new dance film, directed by Paul Davidson (a Corali and NYDC dancer), which has been developed into a workshop for young dancers with regional partners across England.