Associate Creative Choreography Day features Alexander Whitley Dance Company

Central’s Associate Programme students recently had the privilege of working with the Alexander Whitley Dance Company. Designed to give students experience of working and learning from leading professionals in the dance industry, the annual Associate Creative Chorography Day is a much-anticipated part of Central’s Associate Programme.

The company delivered a creative workshop themed around Alexander Whitley’s latest production, Overflow. This new work questions what it means to be human in the shadow of big data and how our lives are influenced by social media.  “Overflow considers how our desires, fantasies and vulnerabilities are powerfully influenced by social platforms, exploring what lurks beneath our compulsions to share and like.”  The piece uses digital technology, such as 3D printed masks, and a musical score sampling sounds from digital platforms and devices.

Students received a unique insight into the creative process, with highly positive feedback; their comments include:

“What an amazing workshop! I loved learning how to move my body in such an abstract way, feeling the music through my movements.”

“I am doing some choreography work at school for my BTEC dance qualification, and I am definitely going to incorporate what I learnt today.”

Associate Programme Parent comment:

“Thank you to Central for hosting such a thought provoking and timely workshop. Alexander Whitley’s Overflow could not be more fitting a work to explore our relationship to the digital technology we have leaned on in recent months. What an amazing insight into the company, their choreographic voice and key influences.”

Jo Hurst, Associate School Manager, says: “Every year we offer our students the opportunity to work creatively with leading professionals in the dance industry and this year we were delighted to work with the Alexander Whitley Dance Company. It is hugely beneficial for the students to work with professionals in the dance industry, to learn about the choreographic process and explore their own creativity.”

Overflow will be performed at Sadler’s Wells in May 2021, https://www.alexanderwhitley.com/overflow

If you are interested in joining the Associate Programme, a pre-vocational programme of Saturday classes specifically aimed at those aiming for professional dance training, note that applications are now open for September 2021 entry. See further details below.