ADAM JOHN ROBERTS
CONTEMPORARY DANCE ARTIST and ENTREPRENEUR
Introduction/Biography
I am an independent dance artist based in Halton (near Liverpool) and an alum from Liverpool John Moore’s University who has studied Dance, both at BA and MA Level. The undergraduate dance degree studied entailed the development of contemporary and jazz techniques and learning about choreography and dance film whilst having the opportunity to practically explore, experiment, structure, film and edit. In September 2016, I returned to LJMU to continually enhance my creative practice supported by academic research under assessment.
Within the 3-year gap, I participated in numerous projects.
I was an apprentice for 12◦ North Dance Company where I performed in select repertory choreographed by Gary Clarke, co-led one-off workshops for pupils in primary- and secondary education and students in further- and higher education whilst acting as a marketing assistant, promoting the company on social media channels to increase audience development.
My other performance experience was the BBC Showcase with the cast of Strictly Come Dancing and the Backstreet Boys, and The Last Resort – a dance film project with English National Ballet.
My other teaching experience was with Cheshire Dance where I was a shadowing dance artist, working with elderly adults and disabled dancers followed by facilitating marginalised groups for the ‘Strive’ programme with DanceXchange.
As ‘Festival Assistant’, my internship with Tmesis Theatre entailed administration and filming rehearsals during the company’s Research & Development stage of their production, That’s Amore! (2014-2015).
I choreographed/performed autobiographical solo dance works for the following platforms and festivals: Turn and “Who’s Got The Max Factor?” both at Contact Theatre in Manchester, Dance Cuts at Lancaster Institute for Contemporary Arts, Platform 0.3 (organised by Manchester Dance Consortium), Slapdash at Ludus Dance, Derelict Mayhem at the University of Central Lancashire, Innovations (Edinburgh), MDI’s LEAP and Homotopia in Liverpool, Emergency at Z-Arts and Mother’s Bloomers at the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester.
From 2018-19, I was an associate artist as a part of the ‘Occupied’ scheme with Ludus and a mentee of Dance Consortia’s mentoring scheme whilst completing the Lloyds Bank Social Entrepreneurs Start-Up Programme (LBSEP) with SSE North West.
My Choreographic Voice
I choreograph work which is autobiographical and technological. I am deeply moved by myself and past experiences, society and the people who form it, thus I am extremely curious in the pursuit of making movement out of these. My raw material is inspired by an element of detachment that allows me to think of conflict, its hurts and frustrations, all of which drive me to employ these within my work.
When interacting with spectators who form the audience, the essences I intend to explore are “This is what happened…” “This is how I feel…” although I tend to mystify these themes by applying abstract elements from sources such as film, due to similarities found by the choreographer.
My choreographic repertoire focuses primarily on scenarios and relationships between people who experience conflict due to differences concerning class and ability. I find presenting movement made of censored features of my private life rewarding. It is courageous, daringly brave and gutsy indeed.
When I choreograph for a company, whether that is small-scale or mid-scale, I always employ the fourth process of Jo Butterworth’s Didactic Democratic Framework Model – Choreographer as Facilitator, Dancer as Creator (2009). My role entails directorship, contributing methods, and negotiating my intention and the process. The dancers are invited to create and develop content in response to a given task and solve a problem as and when necessary.
Reference
Butterworth, J. and Wildschut, L. (2009) Contemporary Choreography: A Critical Reader. Oxon: Routledge