London Contemporary Dance School

London Contemporary Dance School is a leading conservatoire for contemporary dance in the United Kingdom, based in London. It provides vocational and academic training for professional dancers, choreographers, and researchers and operates within a network of performance venues, companies, festivals, and higher education institutions. The school is connected to a lineage of choreographers, companies, and cultural organisations that have shaped contemporary dance practice across Europe and internationally.

History

The school was founded in 1966 during a period of innovation associated with figures such as Rudolf Laban, Merce Cunningham, Martha Graham, Pina Bausch, and Alwin Nikolais, and emerged within the same milieu as Royal Academy of Dance, Sadler's Wells Theatre, The Place, London Festival of Contemporary Dance and Arts Council England. Early leadership drew on practitioners linked to Nederlands Dans Theater, Rambert Dance Company, Royal Ballet School, Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance and collaborators from Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Over subsequent decades the institution developed relationships with choreographers and teachers associated with Judson Dance Theater, Hofesh Shechter, Siobhan Davies, Richard Alston, Wayne McGregor, and Alexander Technique practitioners. The school formally merged its academic provision into Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance while maintaining ties with venues such as The Place (London), Barbican Centre, Tate Modern, Southbank Centre, and festivals like Serpentine Galleries programming. Institutional milestones included validation by agencies in the Office for Students, accreditation aligned with the Council for Dance Education and Training and recognition from organisations such as British Council and UNESCO cultural initiatives.

Academic programs and training

Training spans vocational and academic awards at undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral levels, with pathways validated by agencies akin to University of Greenwich, Kingston University, and frameworks influenced by the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education standards. Programmes combine technique, composition, improvisation, somatic practices, and research supervision by staff connected to Laban Movement Analysis, Contact Improvisation, Feldenkrais Method, Release Technique, and studies of repertory from companies like Batsheva Dance Company, Cunningham Dance Foundation, Pina Bausch Company, and Rambert Dance Company. Modules integrate performance practice, choreography, pedagogy, and arts management referencing professional contexts such as Royal Opera House, English National Ballet, National Theatre, Royal Court Theatre, and international residencies at institutions like Brooklyn Academy of Music and Danspace Project. The school supports research degrees supervised alongside academics affiliated with Goldsmiths, University of London, Royal Holloway, and research networks such as AHRC and EU Creative Europe collaborations.

Facilities and campus

The campus is sited in London performance and training clusters near venues like Greenwich Peninsula, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, Canary Wharf, Barbican Centre, and rehearsal hubs including The Place (London) and Sadler's Wells. Facilities comprise sprung studios, performance spaces, and composition labs equipped for multi-disciplinary work with partners from Royal College of Art, Central Saint Martins, and technology collaborators such as Goldsmiths, University of London media labs and Imperial College London research groups. Technical resources support cross-disciplinary projects with musicians from Guildhall School of Music and Drama, lighting designers linked to Royal Opera House, and film-makers associated with BFI. The building infrastructure adheres to standards promoted by bodies like Historic England when working within conservation areas and engages with accessibility initiatives championed by Arts Council England.

Notable alumni and faculty

Alumni and faculty include choreographers, performers and theorists who have contributed to companies and institutions such as Rambert Dance Company, Random Dance, Hofesh Shechter Company, Siobhan Davies Dance, Phoenix Dance Theatre, English National Ballet, Batsheva Dance Company, Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet, Matthew Bourne's New Adventures, Richard Alston Dance Company, Wayne McGregor, Akram Khan Company, Boy Blue Entertainment, DV8 Physical Theatre, Complicité, Michael Clark Company, and practitioners who have taught at Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, and universities like University of Roehampton. Faculty have included links to makers and researchers from Siobhan Davies, Richard Alston, Wayne McGregor, Akram Khan, Hofesh Shechter, Shobana Jeyasingh, Arlene Phillips, Merce Cunningham Foundation, Pina Bausch Company, and movement analysts trained in Laban Movement Analysis.

Performances and partnerships

Students present work in seasons and festivals at venues including Sadler's Wells Theatre, Barbican Centre, Southbank Centre, Tate Modern, Hebden Bridge Arts Festival, Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Brighton Festival, and international platforms such as Venice Biennale, TransART, Woche der Kritik, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, and touring collaborations with companies like Rambert Dance Company, Scottish Dance Theatre, English National Ballet, Akram Khan Company, and presenters affiliated with International Theatre Institute. Partnerships extend to commissioning bodies including Arts Council England, British Council, Jerwood Charitable Foundation, Paul Hamlyn Foundation, Help Musicians UK, and research collaborations funded through AHRC and Creative Europe. The school maintains exchange and residency agreements with institutions such as Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Goldsmiths, University of London, University of Roehampton, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Danspace Project, and European conservatoires participating in Erasmus+ programmes.

Category:Dance schools in the United Kingdom Category:Higher education in London