Ruffling feathers: Sir Matthew Bourne's Cygnet School programme
Gail Deal
Wednesday, September 1, 2021
For over 30 years Sir Matthew Bourne's New Adventures has delighted and inspired audiences through dance. Committed to training the next generation of performers, Gail Deal finds out more about their latest pedagogic offering
Alicia Clarke
Since 1987 New Adventures have been creating performance works which have changed the audience's perception of dance: Swan Lake, Nutcracker!, The Car Man and Red Shoes to name but a few. In a move to give budding dancers exclusive insight into the working practices of New Adventures, Swan School was launched, providing a residency for selected dancers in the company's Conservatoire programme and annual auditions.
Following this development, New Adventures has launched Cygnet School – the latest facet of the growing company, providing younger dancers with three years of schooling. Cygnets have the opportunity to progress to Swan School as they grow, and possibly join the company after their training, or go on to work with other dance companies or schools.
Cygnet School programme
The three-year programme is aimed at people with dance potential and will take place at The Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury. It is part of New Adventures' commitment to increase diversity in the sector and provide equity of opportunity; the programme is principally funded by the Dorfman Foundation so that young people can access pathways into the arts. The foundation is keen to support those who might not have the means to access a dance training.
The programme will be delivered by associate artistic director of New Adventures, Etta Murfitt; resident artists Kerry Biggins and Paul Smethurst; and dancer in Midnight Bell (2021) Glenn Graham. The first cohort of 12 dancers aged 13–24 years will start on 26 July, with a two-day induction.
Associate artistic director Etta Murfitt elaborates on this exciting adventure, saying ‘The overall aim of Cygnet School is to identify emerging talent and to commit to providing a vigorous, impactful and inspiring pathway towards vocational training or working within the dance industry’.
The school will focus on all aspects of being a dancer such as techniques and skills learned in dance classes, fitness, creating movement, and storytelling. Cygnets will be able to watch shows at the theatre and have backstage tours in order to be introduced to production aspects of a dance show such as lighting, sound, set and costume design. It will give them a feel for what it is like to work in the theatre as part of a dance company. They will be able to see how dance shows are put together and stage-managed.
Cygnets will have particular needs, and each one will be treated as an individual within the school. They will be mentored and led through the programme according to a code of conduct. From September they will attend one day a month, with 2 days in March and a 5 day residency in July 2022.
Sir Matthew Bourne himself has said: ‘The launch of Cygnet School is an important cornerstone in our commitment to increasing diverse representation within the arts. We are sincerely grateful to The Dorfman Foundation for their support and encouragement of this pioneering programme, and to The Marlowe Theatre for welcoming Cygnet School to their building.’
How dancers can join
Participants so far have been identified through New Adventures' wider participation projects across the country, including Sadler's Wells Curtain Raiser (2020) in response to the New Adventures' Red Shoes production; Civil Blood (2019) which was in partnership with Dance United Yorkshire and Studio 3 Arts, London; Romeo and Juliet auditions across more than 13 UK cities, and Dancers in Residence (2018) – an entire school performance programme with William Patten Primary School.
© Kevin S Persaud, KSP Images
Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake (2018)
The chosen dancers shone through at these projects, and had the passion and full commitment that New Adventures looks for in their students. Some students chosen for Cygnet school have had previous dance training, while others have not.
The partnership
Cygnet School is part of The Marlowe Theatre's mission to inspire young people to make and experience theatre, especially in areas of low cultural engagement. New Adventures is an associate company at The Marlowe – their previous collaborations include Romeo and Juliet local cast (2019), Cinderella Curtain Raiser (2018) and Lord of the Flies (2014). The partnership is keen to remove barriers for young people who struggle to access opportunities in the arts; they want to help potentially talented dancers to flourish.
Deborah Shaw, chief executive of The Marlowe Theatre, said: ‘We are delighted to be working in partnership with New Adventures on this project and we are very much looking forward to welcoming the first Cygnet School cohort to our theatre in July. We are passionate about levelling up access to the performing arts and the impact of the pandemic over the last year has made this more important than ever.’
Year one of the Cygnet School training is supported by the South East Local Enterprise Partnership as part of Catalyst for Culture. New Adventures is a National Portfolio Organisation supported using public funds from Arts Council England.