Four emerging regional dance companies, Heather Walrond Company, aKa Dance Theatre, Exim Dance and Richard Chappell Dance, have been selected to perform as part of the prestigious annual dance festival, Resolution, at The Place, London.

There is stiff competition to take part in the performance platform; to have four places offered is a rare opportunity for these local dance companies to showcase the high standard in current South West choreography and performance. These varied flavours of dance will be shown over four separate nights of the performance platform, marking the beginning of a 2016 tour for all four companies.

From Somerset, aKa Dance Theatre Company will be performing their most recent work Next Door on Tues 26 January. Co-founded in early 2014 by local dance artists Jennifer Grant and Joe Garbett, aKa are currently based in Taunton as company in residence at Tacchi-Morris Arts Centre. Artistic Director Jen gained her MA in choreography at Laban, prior to this she trained at The University of Chichester. Joe (Associate Director) also trained here before completing a year as a member of JV2 - The Jasmin Vardimon Company Professional Development Certificate. aKa are dedicated to advocating art in Somerset, keeping dance and theatre alive in the South West and beyond. This year the company have been touring their triple bill, alongside offering performance experiences to young people and community companies through the creation of curtain raisers before the show. Next Door is a duet, choreographed by Jennifer Grant and performed by Joe Garbett and Sally Smithson. Set in the living room of a man and woman's house, like a fly on the wall we watch the relationship unravel. The company is supported by Arts Council England and Tacchi-Morris Arts Centre.

Resolution is currently in its 27th year, and is a renowned performance festival for showcasing emerging new artists. It has been a starting point for artists such as Russell Maliphant, Jasmin Vardimon and Hofesh Shechter. The festival will run through January and February and provides a platform allowing companies to present fresh new work. Resolution provides a triple bill of new work each night, and each of the four South West companies will be performing their varied styles of dance on separate nights of the platform.

Image: aKa Dance Theatre Company – Next Door (Photo: Clélia Vuille)