The NRTF will lead a 3-year national dance rural touring project, the Rural Touring Dance Initiative as part of a 5 year strategic partnership with The Place, Take Art, China Plate and rural touring schemes, primarily in England but also in Wales and Scotland. Each partner has a specific and complementary skill set and the combined ambition is to address current underrepresentation of dance in rural touring. Arts Council England’s ‘Rural evidence and data review’ (March 2015) found that only 2% of NPO funded dance companies toured to rural areas in 2012/13.
Activity will include dance performance touring to rural areas, with a total of 115 shows being promoted in partnership with NRTF member rural touring schemes UK-wide through two menus of work running September to May 16/17 and September to May 17/18. The first menu of work will be offered to schemes in January 2016, and will include work from Phoenix Dance, Sonia Sabri, Spilt Milk, Norwegian Dance Company Panta Rei.
The project will also include two 2.5 day Introduction to Rural Touring in Somerset, labs aimed at dance companies wanting to engage with rural touring, Children & Young People Residencies, and an enhanced dance showcase at NRTF’s Annual Conference in July 2016 and July 2017.
Marketing support will be provided by a co-ordinator who will be appointed to the project, alongside Go & See grants which will enable less confident touring schemes wishing to promote dance to either visit schemes who have a track record in putting on dance shows or to invite a successful touring scheme promoting dance to visit them.
Katey Leader, Director of Dance at Take Art said “I’m really happy to be able to share the benefits and quirks of rural touring with a wider dance community. As a professional dancer I trained at the Place and then the majority of my professional career was touring village halls with Pretty Good Girl Dance Theatre, so I know first hand the value of that intimate experience. My ambition is that dance companies will see Rural Touring as an exciting and viable touring option and will be happy to get involved with the local communities. I am also hoping that we can tackle the way we sell dance to communities, so they feel confident in what the show will be and so promoters don’t avoid dance shows but embrace them.”