Hello to all KND followers!
We hope you are enjoying some glimpses of summer. As ever, it’s been a busy, varied and rewarding time at KND.
We have been leading a range of activities:
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delivering choreographic residencies in Glasgow and Italy
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mentoring artists to create new work: five English National Ballet company dancers, a BRIT student as part of Youth Dance England's Young Creatives programme, and Rambert Company dancer Miguel Altunaga (you can read some of my thoughts on mentoring in this article)
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consulting and compiling an evaluation report for DanceEast's CAT scheme, Ipswich
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directing Street Stories: Dance Collaborations, an artistic development initiative by East London Dance and the Royal Opera House. 16 selected emerging artists have started creating their scratch responses for a sharing on 19th July at the Linbury Theatre. They began their first phase of this artist development process with workshops from inspirational artists such as; Kate Prince, Nico Muhly, Wayne McGregor, Lucy Carter and Lloyd Newson.
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company teaching continues for Michael Clark, Wayne McGregor | Random Dance and Akram Khan companies
One of the most exciting phases of this year so far, was when I spent a thought-provoking, professional development period shadowing Critical Response Feedback founder, Liz Lerman in Washington. I researched alongside Liz's company for her new work 'Healing Wars' which will premiere in New York City in 2014. Bill Pullman is a member of the 'Healing Wars' cast and I loved pretending to be Meg Ryan in Sleepless In Seattle when improvising and generating a duet with him! A vital aspect of this process was closely working with neuro-scientists in Virginia, researching Traumatic Brain Injury and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder with American war veterans and interviewing them on their experiences in Afghanistan and Iraq.This period in the States was an amazing opportunity to be stimulated by Liz's intriguing approach and ethic, and to be translocated into another artists' creative space - it was eye opening artistically but importantly, on a very human level.
To follow on from this inspiring time, Liz visited the UK soon after and shadowed my work here in London and we continued our lively and valued exchange.
“Kerry Nicholls is totally rigorous and uniquely supportive whether she is teaching, mentoring, choreographing, or simply being a colleague. A few minutes with her and you realize you are in the presence of an amazing listener whose insights can make such a difference in this world.”
Liz Lerman
Further great news for KND is that we have now got an administrator on board – efficient Emili Astrom joined in the spring and is supporting the ship masterfully. We are sure that many of you will e-meet Emili in the future if you haven't already – you can reach her at
emili@kerrynicholls.com
CURRENT ACTIVITY
Kerry is in the middle of a five week commission with BA3 dance students at Trinity Laban for their final graduation showcase. She is collaborating with long-time music collaborator, David Walters on a new composition. The performances will be at Laban Creekside 4th and 5th July.
Information and booking
WHAT NEXT?
A highlight in the immediate future is the
KND Summer Programme for professionals at the home of English National Ballet between 29th July - 9th August. It builds on the format of the hugely successful artist development week in December 2012 and continues KND's vision for high-quality professional training in the UK. It is a further opportunity to work in an exclusive setting with Kerry Nicholls and David Walters. The two-week programme offers professional-level masterclasses, workshops in choreography and dance/music collaboration, with opportunities for networking, collaboration and mentoring. See
our workshops page for more details.
A film featuring testimonials from the December phase is available on our vimeo page – so if you need a nudge to apply do take a look as places are filling up!
“Technically challenging, musically enhancing and artistically inspiring. KND offers a brilliant concept for professional training and development that is unique in London and urgently needed on a regular basis.”
Course Participant
If you have any questions about past, current or future projects, please do contact us at
info@kerrynicholls.com and we look forward to seeing you in the summer and beyond.
See you soon,
Kerry Nicholls
Director, KND
