Dance South West

Artists are at the heart of everything Dance South West aspires to do. A career as a dance artist starts in childhood and moves through several stages of development - in school and out, in vocational training, higher education and through post-graduate support. The term ‘artist’ for us includes anyone who works professionally in dance with the aim of encouraging more people to watch, make or take part in dance activity of the highest possible quality.

Artists need opportunities for research, to reflect on practice, to network, to make work for platforms and showcases and, ultimately, to engage with audiences either as spectators or participants. The successful development of dance artists depends on creating a vibrant relationship between agencies, audiences, artists and venues.

Dance happens in a wide range of contexts – in traditional venues such as theatres and arts centres but also in outdoor spaces or in different sites including on screen. It involves a wide range of collaborators such as composers, designers, video artists and writers. Increasingly, artists are making work with a specific audience in mind, for under-fives for example. Dance South West has to date offered the following support to artists:

• Advice and information
• Retreats and residencies
• An Associate Artists scheme
• Mentoring
• Networking
• Support to attend conferences and courses
• Commissions and platforms

In the future we want to support artists in:

• Making innovative work of high quality that attracts new audiences
• Working effectively in the areas of dance and young people, dance for health and the Cultural Olympiad
• Staying in or returning to the south west region after initial training
• Networking with others to develop skills or share information
• Developing international links
• Becoming effective communicators and champions for dance