Up Close & Personal – Meet the TDC Company Dancers
We chatted to our TDC Company Dancers this Autumn to find out more about them – what inspires them and what music they listen to when they warm-up and prepare for SUB:VERSION perfomances.
Jemima
Mesmerising soloist in SURGE and part of SUB:VERSION, freelance dance artist and musician Jemima first studied at London Contemporary Dance School. She’s since toured in various productions internationally, performed alongside artists like Kylie Minogue and Ellie Goulding, and was nominated for The Emerging Artist Award and Outstanding Female Modern Performance at the National Dance Awards 2020.
Jemima, what first sparked your passion for dance?
I first started dancing when I was 3 – I joined a ballet class and just loved the magic of it all at that age. I then saw Michael Flatley and Riverdance at the age of 6 and started Irish dancing too. My inspiration always grew, both through my teachers and seeing older dancers perform, knowing I wanted to be like that one day.
What’s been your most memorable moment so far in your career?
There have been so many incredible moments, and I am so grateful for so many opportunities in my career so far. Definitely a ‘pinch me’ moment was dancing for Kylie Minogue in her video ‘Magic’, and live on TV for The Late Show. I also loved the creation of Surge with TDC – it was a super collaborative process and this came just after lockdown, so our creative juices were in a very special place.
What type of music do you like listening to in your spare time?
My music taste really ranges far and wide depending on what mood I’m in. I enjoy music from the 90s as it’s nostalgic for me, and I’m prone to quite a guilty pleasure playlist with some pop divas. I love EDM, house and garage if I’m in the mood to party, but can easily hit a Nils Frahm or Max Richter if I want to relax.
Give us your top 3 songs to dance to (or drop us the playlist link!)
- Jamie xx – I Don’t Know
- Olafur Arnolds, Nils Frahm – a1
- Anything by Thriftworks
- My current playlist on the go this year: https://spotify.link/RE9YhiQZiDb
John
After working with TDC previously, John is back working on SUB:VERSION and our exciting IN-SCAPE AR project. Combining his creative interest in both theatre and dance, John is a dancer and performer with many strings to his bow. He has numerous choreography awards under his belt, works internationally as a movement director in theatre, film and opera, and has choreographed large-scale opera productions at National Opera Houses around the world.
John, what first sparked your passion for dance?
Watching Scottish Dance Theatre perform ‘Luxuria’ by Liv Lorrent when I was 18 years old. I was training to be an actor and went along to a performance, and from that moment I couldn’t sit still. My body just screamed at me, telling me this is exactly what you should be doing!
What’s been your most memorable moment so far in your career?
I’ve always found this question really difficult to answer. I’ve been completely blessed in my career and have had so many highlights and made forever memories, but just some off top of my head are:
- Standing at the side of the Covent Garden Opera House stage waiting for my bow and listening to 50-strong Opera Singers bellow out their final notes. Super powerful!
- Playing Macbeth for the first time with Punchdrunk in their production of ‘Sleep No More’
- Having my own Triple Bill production at the Hackney Empire from winning the Matthew Bourne Choreography Award
- Seeing the transformation and confidence build in Young Companies
The list is honestly endless!
What type of music do you like listening to in your spare time?
I’m for sure mood-related. I honestly have no genre that I don’t enjoy. But I’m currently learning how to DJ, so I really love house music. Something that has a great funk or rhythm!
Give us your top 3 songs to dance to (or drop us the playlist link!)
- For a slow, quiet improvisation:
https://open.spotify.com/track/6wUznuTYOoSU8KGZ6CVGMA?si=ad46649f19b8430c
- For letting loose with a steady beat and to work on stamina: https://open.spotify.com/track/18M1SwzE03eIqQBtZue2oB?si=b540d6f5510a43ec
- For a bit of funk & duration:
- https://open.spotify.com/track/4RrwcHywcLq3qVY7IVGxOL?si=d19c59b76d3e4601
Alex
New to Tom Dale Company, Alex is part of the SUB:VERSION team. Inspired by the instinctive and reactionary nature of dance at raves and parties, Alex trained at the Northern School of Contemporary Dance, before touring with VERVE and working with choreographers such as Gary Clarke, James Cousins and Vicki Igbokwe.
John, what first sparked your passion for dance?
Probably seeing Madonna twirl around in a pink leotard in her video for Hung Up. Music videos were probably the first place I saw dance!
What’s been your most memorable moment so far in your career?
Discovering my interest in making work and being able to hold space for dancers, who are often friends of mine, to invest physically and mentally and support me in my ideas. I am really grateful for these experiences, as well as being able to discover my voice as an artist. This or touring to Geneva with VERVE!
What type of music do you like listening to in your spare time?
I love too many genres of music to pick one! Anything with enough of a tempo to make my hips move.
Give us your top 3 songs to dance to (or drop us the playlist link!)
This changes all the time! Right at this specific moment they would have to be:
- Bamako (Extended Mix) – Divolly & Markward, Amadou & Mariam
- Throb – Janet Jackson
- Shove It – Santigold, Spank Rock
Orla
New to Tom Dale Company, Orla is part of the SUB:VERSION team. After training with National Youth Dance Company and studying at the London Contemporary Dance School and the Scottish Dance Theatre, freelance dancer artist Orla gained experience working with Emanuel Gat, Roser López Espinosa, Joan Clevillé, Anthony Matsena, Yeal Flexer and many more. Orla was part of We Are As Gods, an immersive work choreographed by James Cousins, and Moving Cloud by Sofia Nappi.
Orla, what sparked your passion for dance?
I began throwing myself around community halls at a very young age – but my interest to make a career out of it came much later, when I found contemporary dance aged 16 at Swindon CAT programme and soon after joining NYDC. It was the people that I met here that made me fall in love. I believe dancers are a breed like no other – alongside the ability to be able to let go, perform and play, it’s the dance community that keeps me buzzing.
What’s been the most memorable moment in your career so far?
Performing Moving Cloud by Sofia Nappi with Scottish Dance Theatre at the folk festival Celtic Connections. Being accompanied by a 14-piece folk ensemble playing energetic trad music and sharing the stage with an incredible family of movers. The room was just fizzing!
What type of music do you like listening to in your spare time?
I listen to all sorts, I couldn’t really package it up! I don’t really like listening to playlists though, so I’m always surprised by what comes out of my music library. I can definitely see influences of my parents in it, bringing various genres from country classics like Johnny Cash to rock from T.Rex and Queen, as well as more modern artists such as James Blake and Gorillaz. A guilty pleasure I can never seem to get away from is good old cheesy 80s and 90s club classics – which I blame on having my radio alarm stuck on Greatest Hits radio station my whole childhood!
Give us your top 3 songs to dance to (or drop us the playlist link!)
- Nevada – Kerala Dust
- Feel Good Inc. – Gorillaz
- I Feel Love – Donna Summer
Sophie
Tom Dale Company dancer and rehearsal director, Sophie studied at London Contemporary Dance School and the Northern School of Contemporary Dance. As a performer, Sophie’s work spans between theatre, the outdoor sector and opera. She co-founded Feet off the Ground, a female led dance collective, inspired by the healing power of dance and the role that movement, expression and creativity plays in people’s lives.
Sophie, what first sparked your passion for dance?
I joined a contemporary youth dance company as a teenager back when I had no real idea of what it was. I had the most amazing teacher called Tory East who I’m still in touch with today, and she moved in a way I had never seen before!
What’s been your most memorable moment so far in your career?
I have favourites for different reasons! Earlier this year I co movement directed a performance at Queen Elizabeth Hall with Streetwise Opera, who work with people who have experienced homelessness. There were over 100 performers accompanied by the full BBC Royal Concert Orchestra. It was pretty epic! Also, working with William Forsythe and performing on the main stage at Sadlers Wells!
What type of music do you like listening to in your spare time?
Soul, disco, funk, reggae, RnB, afrobeats, dance and electronic!
Give us your top 3 songs to dance to (or drop us the playlist link!)
- Energy – Sampa the Great, Nadeem Din-Gabisi
- Glue – Bicep
- Ku lo sa – A Colors Show – Oxlade