TWO PLACES. TWO STORIES. ONE DANCE.

We are excited to announce that our film (Don’t) Say My Name, in which Claudio Monteverdi’s II Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda is given a contemporary twist, will be available in Spring 2025.

Monteverdi’s piece is set in the first Crusades and describes a fierce combat between a European knight and a female Saracen warrior. In our retelling of this story, a group of dancers rehearse the work in a studio. On tour abroad, they encounter a stranger who seems to have stepped out of their story but does not want to be in it. Shot in locations in London and Spain, (Don’t) Say My Name is a poetic and layered exploration of otherness, conflict and reconciliation.

In this article for The Guardian, our Artistic Director, Shobana Jeyasingh provides a unique behind-the-scenes account of the filming process: ‘Look at the camera as if it’s your enemy’: Shobana Jeyasingh’s desert dance among Hollywood ghosts

Shobana Jeyasingh Dance has announced the appointment of Ghislaine Granger in the new leadership role of Executive Producer. Granger joins from Sadler’s Wells Theatre where she has been Senior Producer, Producing and Touring since 2012, working most recently on the theatre’s monumental production of Pina’s Bausch Rite of Spring.

Granger says: “My passion for dance, performing arts, theatre and interdisciplinary art forms has led me on a 25-year journey and I am delighted to now be joining Shobana Jeyasingh Dance as Executive Producer. It is an enormous privilege to work with Shobana who has established a reputation for creating bold and beautifully crafted work over three decades, in the UK and internationally, from conventional stages to site specific locations. I admire her thoughtful and articulate approach, and I look forward to working with her to excite and stimulate audiences’ expectations, extend the work’s reach, and present thought-provoking productions in the company’s ambitious next chapter.”

Jeyasingh says: “I and all at Shobana Jeyasingh Dance are delighted to welcome Ghislaine as Executive Producer. In these times of change and challenge to the arts we look forward to Ghislaine’s expertise, experience and dedication to dance and performance playing a decisive role in the way we move forward.“

Over her twelve years with Sadler’s Wells, Granger worked on projects including Crystal Pite’s Polaris which won an Olivier Award in 2015; Hussein Chalayan’s Gravity Fatigue, choreographed by Damien Jalet; Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui’s milonga; Royal Ballet Principal Natalia Osipova’s Pure Dance; and various programmes with Carlos Acosta and Acosta Danza. Before her time there she worked with Secret Cinema, Told by an Idiot and Fevered Sleep amongst others.

Shobana Jeyasingh has created more than 60 critically-acclaimed works for stage, screen and indoor and outdoor sites ranging from Palladian monasteries in Venice to contemporary fountains in London. She has collaborated with scientists, curators, composers, film makers, digital creatives, dancers and designers to make dynamic multi-disciplinary work that places the body centre stage in the dialogue of ideas. Productions have toured extensively in the UK and internationally, a number of her works have been included in the UK’s National Curriculum for Dance and her choreographic commissions include Rambert, Ballet Black, Company Wayne McGregor, the Venice Biennale, Beijing Modern Dance Academy, City Contemporary Dance Company Hong Kong and Opera National du Rhin. 

Are you an emerging professional dance artist, recent graduate or 3^rd year dance student looking to enrich your practice and training?

Led by our Rehearsal Director Noora Kela and assisted by other company dancers and Shobana Jeyasingh, the SJD Winter Intensive will enable you to immerse yourself in Shobana’s creative process, learn existing company repertory and develop methods of devising movement.

The programme aims to activate thought through dance, encouraging curiosity, diversity and creativity as well as offer practical career advice and networking opportunities. Join us in this four day residency to create and experience work that questions the world around you.

Who is it for

The intensive is open to young and emerging professional dancers, recent graduates and 3^rd year students above the age of 18, with a contemporary and/or ballet background.

Participants will be selected through a short application process, see below for more information on how to apply (video link and CV are required).

• You are aged 18+
• You have a degree (or equivalent) from a ballet/contemporary dance conservatoire or other vocational training centre
• You have several years’ professional experience with a contemporary dance company and/or presenting your own work as a professional dance artist
• You are a 3^rd year student at a ballet/contemporary dance conservatoire, university or other vocational training centre

How to apply

To apply, please fill in the Google Form HERE, ensuring that you upload your CV and link to your showreel. The deadline for applications is 10am on Monday 13 November 2023.

Selection Process

Participants will be notified of the selection by email on Monday 20 November 2023. Places are limited.

Fee

The fee for the Winter Intensive is £120. This is already a subsidised rate.

We are offering 2 x bursaries for two participants on this course. If you would like to apply for a bursary, please contact Joel Cottrell, General Manager at joel.cottrell@shobanajeyasingh.co.uk

Key Dates

Monday 13 November | Applications close

Monday 20 November | Successful applicants notified

Monday 4 to Thursday 7 December | Winter Intensive, 10.00 – 16.00 (17.00 on Thursday)
Rambert Dance Studios, Central London

image (c) Foteini Christofilopoulou

We’re looking for a contemporary dancer for our short dance film (Don’t) Say My Name which is to be shot in the UK and on location abroad.

The role requires:

– An athletic and charismatic female dancer with strong partnering skills.
– Acting and narrative skills and the ability to portray a character
– Ability to devise in a collaborative manner and work under time pressure
– A willingness to work in an exterior site
– Excellent contemporary dance technique.
– At least 3 years of professional experience.

You must be available to audition on Monday 6 November, and for the project dates from Monday 13 to Sunday 26 November (inclusive).

To apply please upload the following via this link, by Thursday 2 November:

– CV
– Two photographs (full-length and headshot)
– A video of you dancing (no more than 3 minutes, please)

Suitable candidates will be contacted by Friday 3 November.

This role is paid at above Equity rates. You must be eligible to work in the UK.

If you have any questions, please email auditions@shobanajeyasingh.co.uk.

Shobana Jeyasingh Dance’s dramatic and powerful new production Clorinda Agonistes – Clorinda The Warrior will be touring this summer and autumn. Inspired by the heroine of Claudio Monteverdi’s celebrated work Il Combattimento, the proud and fiery Muslim warrior Clorinda who defiantly refuses to reveal her name, Clorinda Agonistes weaves contemporary dance, film, and baroque and new music to create a story that explores violence, resilience and revelation across the boundaries of culture and time.

In Shobana Jeyasingh’s bold and surprising retelling of Clorinda’s story, Monteverdi’s heroine not only fights Tancredi the crusading knight (who falls in love with her across enemy lines) but also becomes the standard bearer for women who reveal themselves in new and powerful ways in times of conflict. The baroque beauty of Monteverdi’s score gives way to music by the celebrated Syrian-American composer Kareem Roustom, whose thrilling score includes Dabke rhythms and the haunting voice of Syrian soprano Dima Orsho.

The cast includes Jonathan Goddard and rising star dancer Jemima Brown as Clorinda, with live music sung by renowned tenor Ed Lyon and conducted by Robert Hollingworth, founder and director of the renowned voice ensemble I Fagiolini.

“Clorinda Agonistes is an intense and thought provoking work, skilfully bringing together attitudes bridging many centuries. It is moreover a multifaceted and stimulating work of art.” – Mark Aspen Reviews
“Richly layered… These exceptional dancers create an electric charge – they leap, kick, roll into exhaustion..” – The Guardian

“As the defiant warrior Clorinda, Jemima Brown is an impressive figure of mystery and strength. As Tancredi, Jonathan Goddard beguiles. The standout, however, is the tenor Ed Lyon.” – The Times

The World Premiere took place this July at Grange Festival, Hampshire. Clorinda Agonistes will tour this autumn at:

The Grange Festival – 13 and 14 July 2022

Sadler’s Wells – 9 and 10 September 2022 – Tickets on Sale here

Snape Maltings – 8 October 2022 – Tickets on Sale here 

The Lowry – 18 and 19 October 2022 – Tickets on Sale here

Oxford Playhouse – 15 and 16 November 2022 – Tickets on Sale here 

On 4 November, Arts Council England informed Shobana Jeyasingh Dance they have not been successful in the latest funding bid.

Arts Council England have said:

“This is not the end of our relationship with Shobana Jeyasingh Dance Company and we will work with them to explore other funding opportunities that may be available”

The Company has said:

It has been a privilege to have been funded by Arts Council  England for the last thirty years. Our association with ACE started with the inception of the company and ACE funding, together  with the invaluable and continuing  support of our friends and donors, has been crucial to our growth and achievements. 

We are fortunate  to live in a country that endorses our cultural life through the public purse. We are confident we will continue to work in the future in creatively new  and different ways and to  do our bit to promote the  widest possible dissemination of  excellence, boldness and innovation in the arts.

We are so very proud of our Artistic Director, Shobana, whose production of the new opera Until the Lions had its triumphant premiere last week in Strasbourg at the stunningly beautiful Opera National du Rhin. With a libretto by Karthika Naïr, partly adapted from her book Until the Lions: Echoes from the Mahabharata, performances continue throughout the autumn, so if you find yourself in France with time on your hands and an appetite for some exquisite opera and dance, head here for further details.

Photo credit: Floriaan Ganzevoort, @ganzevoort

This August, while London was reeling from the heat, we took part in a wonderful two weeks dance, music and theatre intensive in the heart of Westminster, in partnership with our partner Dream Arts. Working with local children staying in London over the summer and from families with less easy access to cultural and artistic activities, we created fantastic work weaving movement, story telling and visual arts, inviting friends and families at the end of each week to showcase the work produced. We were also supported by Wellbeing practitioners from Dream Arts which were pivotal in ensuring everyone’s engagement in the programme, and key to exploring challenging concepts such as ‘how to take part and work with each other’, ‘what is failure?’ and ‘why are arts so important to us?”. This is the third year we are working with Dream Arts, and we are hoping to continue this fruitful partnership.

Shobana talks to Shahidha Bari on BBC Radio 3 about Clorinda Agonistes having taken the heroine who fights Tancredi the crusading knight and reframed the story set to the music composed by Monteverdi’s Il Combattimento to discuss the idea about women as warriors and power brokers.

Listen on BBC Website (opens in a new tab).
Time stamp: 26:20 & 32:00

Originally broadcast on 12 July 2022

We absolutely loved dancing our Migration Dance Mob with wonderful students from Meadowhead School in Sheffield on Tuesday 21st June. Working with some of our dancers, the students created a moving 7 mins piece inspired by our latest production, Clorinda Agonistes. They performed it in the glorious sunshine of Barker’s Pool in the centre of Sheffield to an audience of over 100 people, friends and families and passers by. Some of the public even took part in a small workshop delivered with the students and teaching some of the choreography of the work they created!

Keep an eye out for our other upcoming dance mobs taking place around the UK in 2022-23!