Samina Beckford joins Dance Consortium as Programme Coordinator, while Anand Bhatt and Iona Waite become independent directors to its Board of Trustees.
Beckford, currently Project Producer at the Birmingham Rep, will lead a three-year programme with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Bhatt is the artistic director and CEO of Dance City in Newcastle and co-founded Aakash Odedra Company in 2011. Waite is Education Manager at ACE dance and music and supports the strategic development of dance in the African Diaspora, contemporary dance, dance in education, children and young people as well as artist relationships.
Beckford said, “I'm confident we can construct an innovative and meaningful long-term partnership with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater so that a wider variety of young dancers get to experience the beauty of the company, both in workshops and on stage. Alvin Ailey’s work has long been a source of inspiration for me as a black dance artist so it’s honestly a dream to be able to work with the company and Dance Consortium to craft something distinctive for the UK.”
Bhatt added, “living in the UK regions, I have always wished for better access to world-class contemporary dance outside the big metropolises. With a committed education programme, Dance Consortium's values of developing people and audiences chime greatly with me.”