Swindon Dance

We are delighted to announce that Swindon Dance has been awarded a BBC Performing Arts Fund Dance Fellowship, one of 13 grants made to dance organisations across the country. The grant enables us host a placement for 2011/12. Our Fellow is choreographer James Wilton, who is a graduate of London Contemporary Dance School.

Miriam O'Keefe, project manager at the BBC Performing Arts Fund, said of the fellowships that they "will help to nuture emerging talent, giving each Fellow the chance to work with some of the best dance organisations and dance companies across the UK. We hope that this will strengthen the dance sector and are really looking forward to what these 13 Fellows will bring to the dance world over the coming year".

James is originally from Cornwall. He graduated from LCDS in 2009 and since then has established his own dance company, James Wilton Dance, which is rapidly gaining a national reputation. One of James' recent works, The Shortest Day, won the 2010 Sadler's Wells Global Dance Contest.

As a host organisation, Swindon Dance will offer James the opportunity to work under the guidance of experienced mentors in order to develop his company, showcase his choreography and experience the reality of working in a professional dance organisation. In particular, James is keen to learn how to build audiences for his own work and for contemporary dance, outside London.

James Wilton commented, "I think the award is a huge opportunity at a vital stage of my development as a choreographer".

"The opportunity to be supported by the BBC and Swindon Dance will aid me tremendously in achieving my artistic goals. I believe the opportunity has arisen at the perfect time in my career and hope that it will take my company and myself to the next level."

BBC PERFORMING ARTS FUND

JAMES WILTON DANCE