In an exciting bonus episode of Why Dance Matters, we meet the choreographer Dame Arlene Phillips as she receives a special honour at the Olivier Awards, marking a career packed with achievement. A dance legend, Arlene made her name with her racy dance troupe Hot Gossip in the 1970s, before becoming a major player in musical theatre, starting with Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Starlight Express. As she approaches her 80th birthday she’s working with undimmed energy, most recently on a rapturously received immersive production of Guys and Dolls. She’s clearly not stopping for anyone.

Dame Arlene Phillips is a show business legend, honoured with a Special Award at the Olivier Awards ceremony in April. Arlene is known for shows including Starlight Express, Grease and Saturday Night Fever, and currently Guys and Dolls at the Bridge Theatre. She has also choreographed high profile music videos for Whitney Houston, Elton John and Queen and films including Annie, Ridley Scott’s Legend and Monty Python, and was an expert judge on TV shows Strictly Come Dancing and So You Think You Can Dance.

Learn more about Dame Arlene Phillips on her website.

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Giles Terera is no ordinary actor. He won an Olivier Award as Aaron Burr in the UK premiere of the all-conquering musical Hamilton, writing a book about his creative journey. Last year, he played two very different roles at the National Theatre: as Shakespeare’s tragic hero Othello, and as a designer in 1930s Harlem in Blues for an Alabama Sky. He also writes songs and his play, The Meaning of Zong, will soon open at the Barbican in London. Giles is a virtuoso with language – so how do dance and movement shape his art?

Giles Terera MBE is an award-winning actor, musician and writer, working consistently at venues including the National Theatre, Royal Shakespeare Company and Shakespeare’s Globe. He is best known for originating the role of Aaron Burr in the London production of the award-winning musical Hamilton, winning the 2018 Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical. He recently appeared in Blues for an Alabama Sky and as Othello at the National Theatre. His book Hamilton and Me records his journey through the musical and his play The Meaning of Zong is at the Barbican, London in April.

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RAD is an independent educational charity and does not receive regular government funding. Every penny we make goes back into the work we do. You can support us by either naming a seat as part of our Name A Seat Campaign or making a donation.

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Francesca Harper, Artistic Director of Ailey II, is back where it all began. She trained at the Alvin Ailey School, where her mother, Denise Jefferson, was director for 26 years. She has also choreographed for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and now leads Ailey II, which fosters new generations of shining talent and will visit the UK later this year. Francesca has enjoyed an astonishingly varied journey through classical and contemporary dance – notably as a principal dancer with William Forsythe’s Ballett Frankfurt – not to mention in music and theatre. What has sustained her, and what does she hope to pass on to her young dancers?

Francesca Harper is Artistic Director of Ailey II, the celebrated second company to Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. She began her career with Dance Theater of Harlem and was a Principal with William Forsythe’s Ballett Frankfurt. She performed with designers Issey Miyake and Gianni Versace, and on Broadway in Fosse, All Shook Up, and The Color Purple. A writer and recording artist, she has choreographed for companies including Ailey, Ailey II, Dance Theater of Harlem and The Francesca Harper Project. She was ballet consultant for the film Black Swan and movement director for Nick Cave’s The Let Go.

Learn more about Ailey II’s Dance Consortium tour of the UK.

Find out more about the work of the RAD

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RAD is an independent educational charity and does not receive regular government funding. Every penny we make goes back into the work we do. You can support us by either naming a seat as part of our Name A Seat Campaign or making a donation.

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Ana Maria Campos is a Royal Academy of Dance teacher from Brazil. She has travelled widely and lived in several different countries – dance and dance teaching are wonderfully portable skills. As an RAD examiner, she also visits dance schools all over the world – how does she calm the nerves of young dancers and help them give their best? And as someone who has dedicated their career to dance and helping others dance, she will know better than most why dance matters.

Ana Maria Campos grew up in Brazil, training as a dancer with Ilara Lopes and Jorge Pena. She graduated as a teacher from the Royal Academy of Dance in London, receiving the Karsavina and Philipe Nind Awards, and also holds a degree from Durham University in Ballet Teaching and Contextual Studies. Now based in Brazil, she is now a Mentor, Tutor and Examiner for the RAD.

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RAD is an independent educational charity and does not receive regular government funding. Every penny we make goes back into the work we do. You can support us by either naming a seat as part of our Name A Seat Campaign or making a donation.

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Raphael Ng began his career in the ballet studio – only to leap effortlessly into high finance. Based in Singapore, Raphael threw himself into ballet, contemporary and Chinese dance, taking part in international shows and competitions – but when exploring how to manage his money as a student, he caught an excitement for the financial world. Now a fund manager, he discusses the invaluable transferrable skills of dance training – and why, having co-founded a school teaching RAD ballet in Singapore, dance retains a special place in his heart.

Raphael Ng is Fund Manager at Salzworth Global Currency Fund. Born in Hong Kong, he grew up in Singapore. His parents were both dancers; he studied RAD ballet, going on to perform and take part in competitions in Europe and Australia. At Singapore Management University (SMU) he studied information systems management; he took part in dance competitions and the inaugural Youth Olympic Games in Singapore in 2010. His finance career began at Credit Suisse, and he joined Salzworth in 2019. He co-founded Jeté Studios in Singapore, led by RAD Registered teachers.

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RAD is an independent educational charity and does not receive regular government funding. Every penny we make goes back into the work we do. You can support us by either naming a seat as part of our Name A Seat Campaign or making a donation.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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In this episode, we visit the Royal Academy of Dance’s global headquarters in London to meet its new chief executive – the ebullient Tim Arthur. Tim’s previous experience is dizzyingly varied – he arrives at the RAD via senior roles in theatre, publishing and finance, working with companies like Time Out and Virgin Money. Why did a dance organisation feel like the logical next step? We also explore Tim’s current training as a psychotherapist, not to mention his unexpected glory as an almost-award-winning burlesque performer. It’s a heady mix!

Tim Arthur became Chief Executive of the Royal Academy of Dance in 2022. He started his career as a drama teacher, theatre director and playwright. He has been CEO/Artistic Director of Trinity Theatre in Tunbridge Wells, Derby Playhouse’s internationally renowned Community Theatre and Cardboard Citizens, a multi-award-winning charity creating theatre with and for the homeless. As Global CEO of Time Out, he transformed a beloved heritage print title into one of the world’s most innovative media brands, and as Creative Director of Virgin Money helped them to transform into a leading customer champion. 

Find out more about the work of the RAD

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RAD is an independent educational charity and does not receive regular government funding. Every penny we make goes back into the work we do. You can support us by either naming a seat as part of our Name A Seat Campaign or making a donation.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Tiler Peck, one of the world’s great ballerinas, opens the new season of Why Dance Matters. The California-born dancer is a reigning star at New York City Ballet, where she has been a principal since 2009, and is also a director and choreographer in her own right. Feted for her innate musicality and formidable work ethic, audiences respond to her warmth and enthusiasm. She commissions her own programmes of dance, working with great choreographers like William Forsythe and Michelle Dorrance. Having lost valuable time to a career-threatening injury and to the pandemic, she is thrumming with energy. 

Tiler Peck is a principal dancer of New York City Ballet, and has danced on Broadway and on screen. She is also a director, curator, choreographer and designer, and continues to evolve as an artist and add to her extensive repertoire. She launched and starred in BalletNOW in Los Angeles and directed the inaugural Artists at the Center for New York City Center. She developed a daily ballet class, #TurnItOutWithTiler, initially aimed at helping people stay connected and moving during the pandemic. Turn It Out with Tiler Peck & Friends is at Sadler’s Wells, London in March. 

Find out more about Tiler on her website or Instagram @tilerpeck

Turn It Out with Tiler Peck & Friends is at Sadler’s Wells, London, on 9–11 March.

Find out more about the work of the RAD

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RAD is an independent educational charity and does not receive regular government funding. Every penny we make goes back into the work we do. You can support us by either naming a seat as part of our Name A Seat Campaign or making a donation.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Benjamin Zephaniah

In the last episode of this series of Why Dance Matters, we meet a poet – the resonant, rousing, heart-stopping Benjamin Zephaniah. Benjamin’s specific dance connection is that he’s recorded the narration for Rambert’s acclaimed new stage production based on Peaky Blinders, the cult period crime drama. As a celebrated performance poet, he’s used to making language, voice and physicality fuse in the most memorable of ways. His writing for young people as well as adults has been transforming, inspiring generations of readers. He will explore words and bodies, and the way that creativity can change a life.

About Benjamin Zephaniah

Benjamin Zephaniah was a pioneer of the performance poetry scene in Britain. He has spent most of his life performing around the world in schools, universities, concert halls and other public spaces. He is also an actor, a TV and radio presenter, and a novelist, who has written over 20 books. He has his own band, The Revolutionary Minds, but he has also worked musically with Sinead O’Connor, Moby, and Bob Marley’s Wailers. He has his own poetry show on Sky Arts, called Life and Rhymes, and he was born and bred in Birmingham

Find out more about the work of the RAD.

Follow the RAD on social media, and join the conversation with host David Jays

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RAD is an independent educational charity and does not receive regular government funding. Every penny we make goes back into the work we do. You can support us by either naming a seat as part of our Name A Seat Campaign or make a donation.

Benjamin’s website is https://benjaminzephaniah.com

Peaky Blinders: The Redemption of Thomas Shelby will tour during 2023 – visit https://peakyblindersdance.com/

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Why Dance Matters has benefited hugely from encouragement and inspiration from Kathrina Farrugia-Kriel in the Faculty of Education at the Royal Academy of Dance, so it’s high time she was a guest. Born in Malta, Kathrina has been with the Faculty since 2005, and her books include Princess Poutiatine and the Art of Ballet in Malta and co-editing The Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Ballet, a brilliant survey of choreographers shaping the art of ballet. Dance education isn’t just a job to Kathrina, it’s a passion: how did she discover that this was where she wanted to spend her working life?

Dr Kathrina Farrugia-Kriel is Head of Research and Lead Academic Integrity Officer at the RAD’s Faculty of Education. A graduate of the RAD, the Universities of Durham and Surrey and London Metropolitan University, she took up the position of Lecturer in Dance Studies at the Faculty of Education in 2005, and was promoted to Senior Lecturer in 2014. She is editor of Focus on Education, has authored a book on the legacy of Princess Nathalie Poutiatine and co-edited The Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Ballet. She also set up and managed the dance company, three-fortyone dances, from 2003–07, and coaches gifted and talented students in a local ballet school in Surrey.

Find out more about RAD’ Faculty of Education.

Explore the Faculty’s Guest Lecture Series.

Find out more about the RAD’s Dance for Lifelong Wellbeing project.

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RAD is an independent educational charity and does not receive regular government funding. Every penny we make goes back into the work we do. You can support us by either naming a seat as part of our Name A Seat Campaign or make a donation.

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Ballroom culture was celebrated in the tv drama Pose, set in New York during the 1980s and 90s. It originated in Harlem, where queer people of colour came together in act of self-expression and resistance, and is now international. A key figure in London’s scene is DJ, community activist and impresario, Jay Jay Revlon. Jay Jay has serious dance training, and found a home for his talents in ballroom – often with his mother on the door at his events! As father of the House of Revlon, Jay Jay looks after the people who work and perform with him. He’s the perfect guide to ballroom culture.

Born and raised in Peckham, South London, Jay Jay has many hats. His focus is curating events, DJing, Ballroom (voguing) and mentoring. Listed in Time Out’s ‘One to Watch’, he is a committed community activist, dedicated to creating safe spaces and conversations for QPOC and LGBTQ+. He does this through his own club night ‘Let’s Have a Kiki #theparty’ and as a volunteer peer to peer mentor at Stonewall Housing. A devoted influence on the London Ballroom scene, as Father of the ‘UK House of Revlon’, Jay Jay is a leading authority of Ballroom in the UK.

Find out more about the work of the RAD.

Follow the RAD on social media, and join the conversation with host David Jays

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RAD is an independent educational charity and does not receive regular government funding. Every penny we make goes back into the work we do. You can support us by either naming a seat as part of our Name A Seat Campaign or make a donation.

Jay Jay’s website is https://www.justjayjay.com/ and you can follow him on Instagram and Twitter @jayjayrevlon

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