Swindon Dance - history of Swindon Dance

Swindon Dance is one of Britain's longest-running organisations dedicated to the promotion and
support of dance.

It began in 1979 as Thamesdown Contemporary Dance Studio, based — as now — at Swindon's old town hall building. The concept of an integrated dance studio for Swindon was born of the combined vision of Terry Court, then the Borough's Arts Officer, and Marie McCluskey, who leads Swindon Dance to this day.

Despite humble resources, the organisation always had big ideas. Marie articulates clearly that dance is essentially a group artform, relying for its development on a complete ecology of teaching, learning, creating, performing and audience.

Thus, Swindon Dance supported and promoted all aspects of dance form the very start — creating links between them with astounding success, as the careers of its alumni and the growth of its audiences attest.

It helped that Marie's emphasis is on superlative standards. As one of the founder dancers at The Place in her native London, her personal mission was to deliver the same quality of experience locally.

"Just because you live away from the metropolitan areas shouldn't mean you can't get access to quality dance services."

Swindon Dance became one of Britain's
first-appointed National Dance Agencies — regional centres of excellence — at the beginning of the 1990s. The next 15 years saw it grow and develop: from its origin as direct service provider to the local authority, it became a fully independent Trust in 2005.

As its successes have accumulated, Swindon Dance has come to the fore as a consultant for Government and local policy on the performing arts, and as a test-bed for innovations in UK dance support.

Most recently, the organisation has widened its scope to seek ways of increasing international programming in the UK regions.

However, Swindon Dance remains a grass-roots organisation that is emphatic about retaining its local focus.

The experience of young people coming to dance for the first time has always been perhaps its highest priority, and remains the driver behind all its activities. The reasons are close to Marie’s heart. As she says:

"Two things changed my life: education and dance. Every young person should have the chance to experience what I did. Until you give them the opportunity, you don’t know which gift or talent they’ll come out with."

MILESTONES / ACHIEVEMENTS

2005

Swindon Dance becomes an
independent Trust.

2002 onwards

Partnerships established with strategic organisations in the region, such as the ICIA, University of Bath.

1998 - 2001

Swindon Dance launches DanceConnect, an extensive audience development programme funded by Arts Lottery money ... aimed at young people in schools.

1997

Name changes to Swindon Dance.

1993

Major refurbishment of the studio and performance facilities, funded by the Foundation for Sport & the Arts.

1991

Granted National Dance Agency status by the Arts Council ... one of the first two NDAs to be set up.

Inaugural Taking Risks Festival, in association with the Wyvern Theatre ...
now a roughly bi-annual event, presenting performances in venues across the region.

Funding becomes available for commissioning and/or presenting national and international companies at the Wyvern.

1979 onwards

Our long association with the Wyvern Theatre begins.

Open access dance classes, facilities for professional dancers and a performance programme all offered.

1979

Marie McCluskey and Terry Court
found Thamesdown Contemporary Dance Studio with core funding from the Arts Council and the Local Authority.

Town Hall Studios opens as a venue.

Thamesdown's Foundation Dance Course begins ... Britain's first.