TYPE OF WORK
Community dance

TARGET GROUPS

• Disaffected youth in urban settings
• Local territorial factions in urban and rural settings
• Gender equality in dance
• Cross-cultural understanding and racial integration in urban and rural settings

GEOGRAPHICAL CONTEXT
Uk, Sub-Saharan Africa, Central and Eastern Europe

COMPANY POLICY
TAN Dance aims to offer dance to all who wish to experience it, enriching and uplifting their lives. It provides access regardless of ability especially to those who would not normally have that access.

Particular aims to increase confidence and pride in inhabitants of areas of social and economic deprivation, to boost confidence and self esteem in people with learning disabilities and to provide appropriate and safe settings for Muslim women's engagement in dance activities.

SCALE OF PROJECTS
Number of practitioners: 5-20
Number of participants: Previous work has included as many as 200 participants
Preparation time: 2 years maximum
Contact time: 1-4 weeks

PERMANENT STAFF
Carol Brown, Artistic Director
Adele Morse, Administrator

Work with Street Symphony Project (Addis, Ethiopia, 1998-2002)
Aims: To assist in establishing community dance as a tool for social change in Ethiopia by improving knowledge and skills in dance technique; improving knowledge and skills in community dance practice; taking the company through their first experience of working with disabled children; creating a community piece for the company to teach to their youth groups and then perform at a theatre in Addis Ababa.

Participants: Street children who had been invited onto the Adugna training programme; youth groups attending the sessions at Adugna's base; children from the Gemini Trust Kindergarten; women working for the Gemini Trust; young men attending the sessions at Adugna's base; children who had survived polio and were receiving treatment at the Cheshire Homes outside Addis Ababa.

Methology: Daily technique class; observed teaching sessions; teaching practice; tutorial and evaluation sessions; choreographic sessions; discussions.

Outcomes: TAN's input added to the outcome of all Adugna company members graduating, Adugna are now community dance practitioners and professional artists.

Adugna completed their first experience of teaching a large scale community piece to their youth groups which was performed to acclaim at a local theatre. Further work was carried out at the Cheshire Homes and the disability work has now developed with the input of Adam Benjamin into the creation of the Adugna Potentials, a group of young adult males with physical disabilities who sometimes perform with the company. Much is being done to change the perception of disabled people by this work.

TAN workers were re-energised and excited about dance on return. Together 2000 Project mounted in Swansea with ethnic minority groups and homeless people as a direct result of the experience, skills and knowledge gained from working with Adugna.

Research and dance performance project
With local people and refugees and asylum seekers to improve knowledge and understanding and promote friendships.

International exchange
With the company's learning disabled integration group and a similar group overseas to further increase skills, experience and confidence of the groups involved.

Carol Brown
TAN Dance Ltd
Baglan Community Centre
Hawthorne Avenue
Baglan
Port Talbot SA12 8PG

T +44 (0) 1639 813428
F +44 (0) 1639 8123487

E info@tandance.org
W www.tandance1.btinternet.co.uk

“We had every good relationship with you…working with you it was a very wonderful experience – special to do something we were not exposed to before.”
Simon Nkose, The Creators, Dobsonville (Soweto, South Africa)

“It has opened up my mind to a degree whereby I have learned a new way of thinking.”
Nicholas Wolliscroft, Team member, Lithuanian project

“It had a vision, organisation, excellent planning and involved every community group that was possible.”
Doug Reid, Programme Manager, European Urban Project Team, Townhill and Mayhill Urban Initiative

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