How do we perform dance without theatres?

How do we teach dance without a studio?

With the sudden raft of restrictions applied due to COVID-19 we - along with everyone else - had to think quickly about how to respond as an organisation. As a touring production company, our core aim is to commission, produce and tour dance performances, as well as deliver world class educational projects and research programmes. It became clear very quickly that none of this would be possible while any restrictions remained in place. 

At first there were more questions than answers -

When will we be able to tour again?

How will dancers keep earning?

How will dancers keep fit?

Will staff members lose their jobs?

What will happen to our planned education projects?

Luckily, we are in a stronger position than most. As a company we are an Arts Council NPO with guaranteed public funding for the next two years, and have minimal outgoings when we’re not touring. But this only solves a small part of the problem. We have a moral obligation towards the dancers we work with, and maintaining the commitment we made to young people and participants of our educational work.

We therefore set to thinking of ways we could continue to deliver activity during these unprecedented times. 

Firstly, we started to digitise our historic productions from the past 25 years, creating a Digital Archive on YouTube allowing anyone around the world to watch our past productions, commissions and commercial work - for free.

Next we began work on Online Company Classes. We receive hundreds of requests to join company class and it’s often not possible because of the way we work. But lockdown gave us an opportunity to deliver something to dancers and dance practitioners stuck at home. With many of these dancers and trainee dancers likely to be financially impacted, we decided to run 6 weeks’ worth of online classes via Zoom on a 'donate what you can afford' basis... This also gave us an opportunity to provide paid work to the professional dancers we work with, and professional training with Russell Maliphant to bring them up to speed.

The classes were led by Russell himself and five dancers that we have worked with regularly over the past few years - Alethia Antonia, Edd Arnold, Grace Jabbari, Folu Odimayo, and Will Thompson. 

The classes were a huge success. 

We delivered 28 classes to a total of 577 attendees. Many participants partook in several classes on a regular basis and the feedback we received was overwhelmingly positive. Over 70% of the participants described the classes as ‘Excellent’ (the highest rating), with the remaining 30% split between ‘Very Good’ and ‘Good’. 

Participants loved the relaxed delivery and the vast knowledge and experience of each of our teachers. The connection to the body and anatomy was a key part of the experience for many, and several participants cited an increased understanding of their body after each class. The times and dates of the classes, and the ability to participate from a small individual space, were convenient to most also. 

The only criticism received from participants was around sound quality. This is largely due to individual bandwidth capabilities, but can be improved when sharing music directly through Zoom. We have researched some additional solutions to improve sound quality, which we will ensure has been shared with each of the teachers.

Due to the incredible response to this initiative and our continued desire to deliver engaging projects to the wider dance community, we are looking to provide more online company classes over the following months.

Participant quote:

RMDC daily classes came at a time when I was personally feeling low, teaching and meeting online as opposed to being present in person. The classes were the exact tonic I needed to feed myself and to stimulate me physically. I felt I needed structured classes to enjoy myself as a participant and not as a teacher.

The classes themselves were structured in a non-linear technique which can suit anyone. I especially welcomed the different teacher's approach to teaching yet keeping within Russell's philosophy in movement and skeletal structure. 

What was really good was when teachers mentioned participants’ names during the class. It gave a personal touch and spurred everyone on. 

I was especially pleased that classes were extended [for a longer period] so that I could attend more whenever I was not working.

Michael Joseph