Every year, The Place opens its doors to a vast number of artists from dance and neighbouring artforms, resulting in a month's worth of triple bills, many of them by unfamiliar or dimly familiar names. The Place is proud of the dance world's greats who presented their early works at Resolution - now in its 25th year - but to the untrained eye, it can be hard to tell what to watch.

 

And yet, if anything, Resolution teaches us not to presume. The eagerly-anticipated works don't always live up to their promise, and unexpected works can sneak in and impress us without warning. But that's the nature of Resolution, with the choreographic hothouse feel of the final weeks as young choreographers race to create new work on a threadbare shoestring of a budget, rarely without sufficient time or resources to completely finish and polish their works.

It's also important to note that Resolution means different things to different participants. For some, it's a springboard for starting their choreographic career; for others, it's an annual opportunity to dabble in a new work for fun, or a chance to measure their progress. Not all of the participants have a background in dance, which will lead to some surprises, and fans of hiphop dance will be pleased to see quite a few Breakin' Convention dancers in the programme again.

This year, it's been more challenging than usual to research the participants: partly because the choreographers are no longer listed on The Place's website, but also - despite the compulsory marketing workshop - no information could be found about many of the choreographers, companies and the work they're presenting. It's a shame, because how are people going to be persuaded to see their work if they don't know anything about it?

Note: there are always several past CDF participants in Resolution each year, hence (CDF) after people's names, where applicable.


Unmissable

18 January: Ihsaan De Banya & Kenny Wing Tao Ho
Trailer: https://vimeo.com/78488452
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/suse-tietjen-ihsaan-de-banya-and-kenny-wing-tao-ho-lucy-palmer-dance-company

'Casting Shadows' is a duet created by recent LCDS graduates Ihsaan De Banya and Kenny Wing Tao Ho, now working with Richard Alston Dance Company and Protein respectively. They are both exceptional dancers, with training in diverse dance styles, which we'll see in this work - along with fine movement and interesting choreography.


28 January: Lo-Giudice Dance (CDF)
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISFy7ZlPx7k
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/lo-giudice-dance-richard-osborne-jo-littledyke

Anthony Lo-Giudice launched his contemporary ballet company in 2011, and his choreographic style has evolved significantly since then: in the R&D video (link above), his choreographic style has been distilled, and he uses sumptuous imagery - perhaps inspired by all his work in Italy and the Czech Republic? The company's previous work, 'Distant Light', was commissioned by the Northern Sinfonia, while 'Move_On_Baroque' was created with the support of Antonello Tudisco and Collectivo Nada (Naples) and Dance City (Newcastle).


31 January: Alex Broadie
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/e33-dance-company-elena-jacinta-alex-broadie

Alex Broadie seemed likely to become a rapid choreographic success after graduating from LCDS nearly 10 years ago, but he has been keeping mostly quiet since then, occasionally surfacing with a new work, so it's wonderful to see him back and creating again!

In 2004, he created a dance collective called Mother Wanted A Girl (MWAG); in 2005, he was a finalist in the Burgos dance competition, alongside Hofesh Shechter, and in 2006, he was a semifinalist in the inaugural Place Prize. Since then, he presented "a squabbling duet" at the Edinburgh Festival with Isabel Cohen in 2009, and that seems to be about it. Whatever this new work is, you can expect it to be damn good.


1 February: Saad
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/saad-davin-king-far-norm

Marc Saad is a contemporary of Alex Broadie's, graduating from LCDS in 2005, and this is his second Resolution work. While 'Think Outside...', his 2012 work, drew on his Middle Eastern heritage, 'Habibi', a solo, aims to explore "the darkness from within one's self".  Marc Saad is a very strong and compelling choreographer - we're looking forward to seeing this.


7 February: Porkpie Dance Theatre
Trailer: https://vimeo.com/76420036
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/porkpie-dance-theatre-maria-fonseca-georgia-tegou

I've been interested in Anaish Parmar's choreography for several years, and was pleased when he finally created 'Mum... what's my gam?' for Resolution last year, a duet exploring his displaced Asian heritage while growing up in Leicestershire. He follows this up with 'Chai Pannai', a new duet about an Asian arranged marriage.

Anaish is a beautiful dancer and a very talented choreographer, with a knack for comic storytelling.


11 February: Slanjayvah Danza (CDF)
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/lcp-dance-theatre-jenni-wrens-slanjayvah-danza-holasz

Unusually for Resolution, Jenni Wren of Slanjayvah Danza has just celebrated 10 years of being a professional choreographer, and her current work, Minor Tears, was premiered at a gala in November. Minor Tears tackles an essential issue in dance: injuries and how we live with them, and her dancers include the wonderful Azzurra Ardovini, recently of Phoenix Dance Theatre.

No trailer is available, so here's a trailer of Jenni's unforgettable 'Blind Passion': https://vimeo.com/1746250


15 February: Moxie Brawl (CDF)
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/moxie-brawl-akiko-dance-project-just-us-dance-theatre

Sarah Blanc may be better known to many these days for her work with Inside Dance TV, so this is a welcome return to her choreography, and as 'It Started with Jason...Donovan' will see Sarah recounting past dates through the songs of Jason Donovan, it'll be entertaining and memorable - hopefully in a good way!


15 February: Just Us Dance Theatre (CDF)
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/moxie-brawl-akiko-dance-project-just-us-dance-theatre

Joseph Toonga's company Just Us Dance Theatre was one of the best performances of our July 2013 festival, so we're thrilled to see that he's been selected to be the final act for this year's Resolution - barely half a year since graduating from LCDS.

Supported by Deutsche Bank, Greenwich Dance Agency and Arts Council England, and the winner of East London Dance's Blueprint Bursary in his first year of studies at LCDS, Joseph has been receiving significant interest in his work, so 'I know that I'm a woman, a woman with inner strength', inspired by an Anne Frank quote, should hopefully be unmissable.

 


Highlights 

14 January: James Finnemore (CDF)
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/anything-goes-collective-james-finnemore-l%C3%A9a-tirabasso

James Finnemore has spent several years in Hofesh Shechter's company and is currently performing in Punchdrunk's 'The Drowned Man'. He has been developing his choreography over the last few years, creating solos on himself, and the occasional group work, including his latest piece, 'Oh|Glory'. James has a beautiful movement style, and an intriguing choreographic eye.

It's also the opening night of Resolution, which gives you all the more reason to go.


16 January: Katarse Ensemble
Trailer: https://vimeo.com/78365749
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/katarse-ensemble-spirodance-pinch

Another Hofesh alumnus, Rosana Ribeiro has also worked with the Royal Opera House and Anthony Middleton (see below). There isn't much information available about her or her work, but from the trailer above, she'll be treating us to interesting movement and choreography in 'Fuel'.


22 January: James Morgan & Charley Fone
Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmDszVTcFyQ
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/james-morgan-and-charley-fone-sweet-or-sour-wide-eyed-dance

What a trailer!


24 January: theMiddletonCorpus (CDF)
Trailer: https://vimeo.com/78987910
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/henry-curtis-themiddletoncorpus-nomadic-souls

Like Anthony Lo-Giudice, I've watched Anthony Middleton's choreography evolve, and after the beauty of his last solo 'Manuum', we have high hopes for his latest work 'It's what you don't see', a sparse duet with Isabel Slingerland.


31 January: E33 Dance Company
Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwkU88ibmxQ
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/e33-dance-company-elena-jacinta-alex-broadie

How many chances do you get to watch a ballet and capoeira fusion? I'm guessing not many, and Rachel Rivera's company E33 Dance Company looks like it's offering us something quite special. You can also support their crowdfunding campaign at http://igg.me/p/578177/x/1895304

 

1 February: Far From The Norm
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/saad-davin-king-far-norm

If you're a fan of hiphop dance, then you've probably already booked a company to see Botis Seva's performance. If you're interested or curious, then now is your chance.

 

7 February: Maria Fonseca
Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBAmGtNDRrg
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/porkpie-dance-theatre-maria-fonseca-georgia-tegou

Maria Fonseca has had an incredibly busy year as a dancer - for choreographers including Nuno Campos, Darren Ellis, Ben Wright and Ivan Blackstock as well as in music videos - and this is a chance to see her in a solo choreographed by herself instead. Maria is an impressive and powerful performer, but what will her choreography be like? There's one way to find out.


14 February: Mansoor Ali
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/naomi-reynolds-mansoor-ali-b-hybrid-dance

Mansoor was one of my picks from last year's Resolution, and as there's no fresh information about 'He Waves His Dusty Hand Hello', here's what I wrote last year:

"Mansoor Ali's choreographic star has been rising fast, with his works performed at unusual venues such as The Wallace Collection and Brickbox Market and also performed by EDge and the recent graduating London Contemporary Dance School students. He's no doubt already on several Who To Watch lists, so it's probably about time we added him to ours. "


14 February: Naomi Reynolds
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/naomi-reynolds-mansoor-ali-b-hybrid-dance

Naomi Reynolds is a former dancer with the Royal Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet, so this could be something very good.

 

Other CDF Companies & Friends (links to follow)

17 January: Pell Ensemble
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/pell-ensemble-anecdotal-evidence-daisy-farris-dance-collective

Dancer and choreographer Rebecca Evans, who has worked with Marc Brew Company, Ffin Dance, Ijad Dance Company and Korean National Contemporary Dance Company, created Pell Ensemble in 2013 to celebrate some of the unsung "superheroes" of contemporary dance, including Tim CJ Chew, Megan Griffiths, Lisa Hood and David Ogle, while other contributors include James Cousins, Davin King and Aaron Vickers.

'Decoy' - with a tagline of "Don't be a sitting duck!" - will be Rebecca's second creation for Pell  Ensemble, and you can find out more about it on Pell Ensemble's crowdfunding campaign on http://www.sponsume.com/project/decoy

Pell Ensemble is a wonderful initiative, offering a creative outlet for the community of dancers who have regularly worked together over the years, and opportunities to collaborate on new projects.


29 January: Rachel Burn
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/culture-device-dance-company-rag-days-rachel-burn

Rachel is a long-term friend of CDF and its work: she's presented her work in the earlier festivals, created work on CDF's company Cloud Dance, and also presented work in CDF's offshoot Cloud Dance Sundays. Rachel's style is best described as 'filmic'; her choreography is naturally quirky, with costume, lights and props existing as integral, scene-building features, rather than additions. She works closely with music, and precise, mathematical patterns to create scenes that encourage from the audience a sense of story, rather than providing an explicit narrative.

Threshold is inspired by the poetry of Walt Whitman, about three women finding their place in a black and white world through attention to detail; detail is key to Rachel's work, and how she layers that throughout her work.


6 February: Ieva Kuniskis
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/heather-stewart-and-helen-cox-ieva-kuniskis-waldeinsamkeit-theatre

London-based Lithuanian choreographer Ieva Kuniskis draws on different discplines including Lithuanian theatre and the folklore tradition of storytelling, creating work in that grey area between dance theatre and physical theatre.  

Her last work, 'Gone To Get Milk', received a rave review from London Dance on its premiere at Resolution last year, and has since toured in Lithuania and Austria; 'Women's Tales' is her follow-up work.


7 February: Georgia Tegou
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/porkpie-dance-theatre-maria-fonseca-georgia-tegou

Collaboration and visuals are integral parts of Greek choreographer Georgia Tegou's work, as well as a thorough research process to explore new possibilities of creation and performance, whether drawing on live sound, video, visual art or any other suitable tools. For her last Resolution! work, she collaborated with the composer Greg Giamougiannis, while UnderTone is a collection of anecdotes about people and everyday life, and is being redeveloped for Resolution in collaboration with John Ross Dance's dancers Thomas Hands and Matt Lackford.


14 February: B-Hybrid Dance
Tickets: http://www.theplace.org.uk/naomi-reynolds-mansoor-ali-b-hybrid-dance

No information is yet available about B-Hybrid Dance's latest work, however Brian Gillespie's work draws on the strengths of dancers from diverse disciplines, creating tightly choreographed work. More to be revealed... !

 

 

We'll also be reviewing a number of the shows, so be sure to check back regularly for our feedback on these and other works!

 

Frenemies photo by Alex Broadie.