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Teachers
Adèle Thompson, Dancer in Residence
 In
1996, Sara Matthews, a former dancer with the Rambert Dance
Company, became the first Queens’ Dancer in Residence.
Sara gave beginner and intermediate classes and also worked
with the Queens’ rugby players, an initiative that became
famous when pictures of Sara and the rugby team appeared in
the national press. Sara initiated a valuable collaboration
between the Dancer in Residence and the Queens’ College
Musician, working with harpsichordist Giulia Nutti during
her time at Queens’. Sara’s classes were supported
by a grant from the Hamlyn Foundation.
Sara went on to become Assistant Director of Dance at Central
School of Ballet. In the autumn of 1998, Kenneth Tharp became
the second Dancer in Residence. Having trained at the Place's
London Contemporary Dance School Kenneth performed with London
Contemporary Dance Theatre and Arc Dance Company. He has since
worked as a dancer, choreographer, director and teacher. He
serves on the Boards of the Royal Opera House and Phoenix
Dance Theatre and is a Clore Fellow. In 2003 he received an
OBE in recognition of his services to dance. In 2007 he was
appointed as Chief Executive of the Place, the UK's premier
centre for contemporary dance.
The third and current Dancer in Residence is Adèle
Thompson who studied at Cambridge University and London Contemporary
Dance School and now works as an independent dancer, choreographer,
abseil-dancer, stilt artist and teacher.
She was a founder member of STOMP’s European touring
company performing in the OSCAR nominated film BROOMS and
in their sell out season at London’s ROYAL FESTIVAL
HALL and JACK DEE’S SATURDAY NIGHT for ITV, as well
as touring extensively with the company. Adèle also
works in contemporary circus incorporating dance, abseiling,
aerial and stilt work.She was head of movement, music and
equilibristics for the NEW MILLENNIUM EXPERIENCE COMPANY training
all the performers of the CENTRAL SHOW in the MILLENNIUM DOME,
and one of the team writing the first ever degree in Circus
Arts for Circus Space. In the DOME she went on to become a
member of the artistic team as assistant choreographer, resident
director and stilt coach whilst also performing in the show
itself. Fellow artistic team members included Peter Gabriel
and Micha Bergese. As a result of which she was invited to
devise, direct and perform in an aerial entertainment for
MANUMISSION Ibiza, the biggest club in the world.
She worked for many years with LONDON CONTEMPORARY DANCE
THEATRE, danced in the arena operas CARMEN, TOSCA and AIDA
in England, Europe and Japan and has appeared in numerous
television programmes including BBC Television’s costume
drama WITCHCRAFT. She choreographs for stage, television and
community. Her most recent choreographies include commissions
from WOKING DANCE FESTIVAL, NORFOLK AND NORWICH FESTIVAL,
SUFFOLK SHOW, DANCE EAST, HED:STRONG, HAMPSHIRE YOUTH DANCE
COMPANY, AMANI NGOMA National Dance Company of Zanzibar, National
Trust’s BATTLE OF TRAFALGAR, Monteverdi’s CORONATION
OF POPPEA Queens’ College Cambridge; RAW-KUS Kickstart
Dance Company; ARTSWORK Tyne Tees TV; the British premier
of Nicholai Erdman’s THE PARTY CARD, JOHN HEGLEY performance
poet and two short films for the ROYAL COLLEGE OF ART.
In 2006 she choreographed and performed in the opening event
for NORFOLK & NORWICH FESTIVAL with Spanish street company
SARRUGA, being invited back last year to work and perform
with Brazilian favela band MOLEQUE DE RUA and 300 local young
people for the spectacular opening event of the Festival.
She was part of the artistic team leading the NATIONAL YOUTH
DANCE FESTIVAL 2006 and completed work on an 18 month educational
project with BIRMINGHAM ROYAL BALLET and CHANNEL 4, the resulting
four part documentary "BALLET CHANGED MY LIFE: BALLET
HOO!" being screened in autumn 2006. Adèle co-directed
SADLER’S WELLS YOUTH DANCE COMPANY with previous dancer
in residence Kenneth Tharp for six years and choreographed
six works for them, she also runs her own project based company
of dancers, circus artists, musicians and other artists, BARKING
DOG DANCES. She was recipient of a YEAR OF THE ARTIST award
in 2001 to research and develop break-dance and stilting with
UK leading breaker BANKSY. In 2004 she abseiled CANARY WHARF
TOWER to raise funds for the Lord Mayor’s Appeal and
taught the Lady Mayoress of the City of London to stilt. She
is currently stilt coach on several WEST END productions as
well as Dancer in Residence at QUEENS' COLLEGE.
A experienced performer of international acclaim Adèle
is also an excellent and inspiring teacher. She teaches contemporary
dance technique, choreography, physical theatre, repertoire,
pedagogy, stilting and STOMP-style physical rhythm regularly
guest teaching at such institutions as LONDON CONTEMPORARY
DANCE SCHOOL, SKOLEN FOR MODERNE DANS and SYDDANSK UNIVERSITAT
DENMARK, CIRCUS SPACE, UK NATIONAL DANCE AGENCIES, schools
and colleges throughout the UK and also in Europe. She leads
dance practitioner and teacher inset training courses throughout
the UK. Adèle has taught professional classes in Japan
and Africa and she leads communication and team-building workshops
for corporate businesses worldwide. The Independent said of
her, "Brilliant, just brilliant, this teacher is the
greatest, the best we need some more of this" and The
Times Educational Supplement described her as having "infectious
energy".
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