Dance Hub SA, formerly Leigh Warren & Dancers or Leigh Warren + Dancers (LWD) and then LWDance Hub, is a

contemporary dance Contemporary dance is a genre of dance performance that developed during the mid-twentieth century and has since grown to become one of the dominant genres for formally trained dancers throughout the world, with particularly strong popularity in ...

company based in the

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

n capital of

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater A ...

. Formed in 1993 by

Leigh Warren Leigh Warren (born 1952) is an Australian contemporary dance choreographer and Artistic Director of Leigh Warren & Dancers (LWD) having previously been at the Australian Dance Theatre. He choreographed and directed the ''Portrait Trilogy'' of o ...

, the company toured internationally and won several awards. In its 2019 incarnation as Dance Hub SA, it has increasingly taken on the role of

peak body A peak organisation or peak body is an Australian term for an advocacy group or trade association, an association of industries or groups with allied interests. They are generally established for the purposes of developing standards and processes ...

within the state, playing an advocacy and education role for dancers and

choreographer Choreography is the art or practice of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which motion or form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A choreographer is one who cr ...

s. It is a community space for both emerging and established artists, with a program that includes

artists-in-residence Artist-in-residence, or artist residencies, encompass a wide spectrum of artistic programs which involve a collaboration between artists and hosting organisations, institutions, or communities. They are programs which provide artists with space a ...

and an international

exchange program A student exchange program is a program in which students from a secondary school (high school) or university study abroad at one of their institution's partner institutions. A student exchange program may involve international travel, but do ...

History

1993: creation

The

dance troupe A dance troupe or dance company is a group of dancers and associated personnel who work together to perform dances as a sport, spectacle or entertainment. There are many different types of dance companies, often working in different styles of dan ...

was formed in 1993 by Leigh Warren (formerly of the

Australian Dance Theatre Australian Dance Theatre (ADT), known as Meryl Tankard Australian Dance Theatre from 1993 to 1999, is a contemporary dance company based in Adelaide, South Australia, established in 1965 by Elizabeth Cameron Dalman . The ADT was the first moder ...

), named Leigh Warren + Dancers, which moved into the loft studio of the newly-created

Lion Arts Centre The Lion Arts Centre, also known as Fowler's Lion Factory and Fowlers Building, with the main music venue within known as the Lion Arts Factory (formerly Fowler's Live), is a multi-purpose arts centre, including studios, galleries, music and per ...

, on the corner of North Terrace and

Morphett Street, Adelaide Morphett Street is a main street in the west of the city centre of Adelaide, South Australia, parallel to King William Street and numbered from north to south. At its northern end it is part of the West End of Adelaide, a thriving cultural an ...

2011: loss of funding

The company lost its funding from the

Australia Council The Australia Council for the Arts, commonly known as the Australia Council, is the country's official arts council, serving as an arts funding and advisory body for the Government of Australia. The council was announced in 1967 as the Austr ...

as well as a guarantee of similar funding from

Arts SA Arts South Australia (previously Arts SA) was responsible for managing the South Australian Government's funding for the arts and cultural heritage from about 1996 until late 2018, when it was progressively dismantled, a process complete by early ...

in 2011, leaving it to rely on major sponsors and

benefactor Benefactor may refer to: * ''Benefactor'' (album), a 1982 album by Romeo Void * Benefactor (law) for a person whose actions benefit another or a person that gives back to others * Benefication (metallurgy) In the mining Mining is the ext ...

s and smaller funding bodies.

2014: New director?

In 2014, Warren handed over the reigns first as resident choreographer, then (in 2015) as artistic director to the 28-year-old dancer and choreographer Daniel Jaber, who, like Warren, had established his skills with the Australian Dance Theatre. His work was in

contemporary ballet Contemporary ballet is a genre of dance that incorporates elements of classical ballet and modern dance. It employs classical ballet technique and in many cases classical pointe technique as well, but allows greater range of movement of the uppe ...

rather than contemporary dance, but he hoped to "present everything from super experimental work to the high gloss stuff". He had considered changing the company’s name from Leigh Warren Dance (sic) to Daniel Jaber Dance in the future, but thinks it is more likely that LWD would remain in any change of name.) However, only a year later came the news that Jaber had departed for

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

and that LWD would be transformed into a dance hub, "a dedicated dance arts venue and incubator that supports and develops mid career, independent and emerging artists". Jaber cited lack of funding as the main reason for his departure: the Australia Council triennial funding had expired in 2012, and the company had been surviving on project grants ever since. Only one out of nine of Jaber's applications for funding for 2015 had been successful: the SA government had contributed a grant of , which was hardly enough to pay a single salary. There were other reasons too, some personal, but he was working on forming a new company which would work across international borders. Jaber pointed to some successful developments at the company under his management – workshops and masterclasses with some of the best dancers from around the country, and the establishment of an education and community program and the appointment of an education manager, Kialea-Nadine Williams.

2016: LWDance Hub

With the competitive dance industry competing over support for the independent dance sector and the failed future artistic director of the Leigh Warren Dancers Company. In 2016, Warren reshaped the company to accommodate the reduced funding, rebranding it as LWDance Hub, relying on residencies, workshops and open house sessions for performers and choreographers to hone their skills. This was also to maintain the studio space that is government funded that has now been taken over by State Theater. From early 2018 through to July 2019, the LWDance Hub supported 33 creative endeavours, presented 25 new works for the

Adelaide Fringe The Adelaide Fringe, formerly Adelaide Fringe Festival, is the world's second-largest annual arts festival (after the Edinburgh Festival Fringe), held in the South Australian capital of Adelaide. Between mid-February and mid-March each year, ...

and SALA Festival, and had 200 artists take part in its programs.

2019: Dance Hub SA

In July 2019, Warren handed over the artistic directorship to choreographer and multimedia artist Amanda Phillips, at the same time renaming the company Dance Hub South Australia (later changing this to Dance Hub SA, with Warren staying on as patron). Dance Hub SA was officially launched in August 2019, with the rebranding reinforcing the organisation as the

for dance in the state. This was in competition between The Australian Dance Theater International Choreographic Center that focuses on supporting the imported company members as the independent sector and The Mill who was funded after dismantling Ausdance SA. The Hub is intended as a hierarchical community space for selected emerging AC Arts graduates, established dancers and selected choreographers. With one of its goals being for it to be the bridge and replication between formal education and "the real world" based on the exploitation of artist other than those selected in the hierarchy, creating another pathway (outside of ADT dance company) for choreographers who are creative producers. The "Mind The Gap" residency program is a partnership with Tasmanian company TasDance, and the Artist in Residence program. The inaugural artist on a new international exchange program would be Wu Chien-Wei, from Taiwan’s Tussock Dance Theatre.

Dance works that were not a part of the Dance HuB SA and are formally a part of Leigh Warren's Company

* ''Quiver'' (1997 in Adelaide and Canberra; 1998 in Brisbane) * ''Shimmer'' (1999 – toured widely in Australia; also filmed for ABC TV) * ''Masterpieces of the 20th C'' (1999) * ''Silent Cries'' (1999) * ''Wanderlust'': a collaboration with Japanese choreographer Uno Man (2007) * ''Frame and Circle'': Choreographers: Prue Lang ''Rubicon'' and Leigh Warren ''Meridian'' (2010 at The Space in the

Adelaide Festival Centre Adelaide Festival Centre, Australia's first multi-purpose arts centre and the home of South Australia's performing arts, was built in the 1970s, designed by Hassell Architects. The Festival Theatre opened in June 1973 with the rest of the cent ...

) * ''Dreamscape'', consisting of two works: ''Dream Time'': (previously choreographed by

Jiri Kylian Jiri ( ne, जिरी) is a municipality in Dolakha District in the Bagmati Province of central Nepal. At the time of the 2011 Nepal census it had a population of 13,638 people.. Jiri, which lies about 190 kilometers from Kathmandu, is the ma ...

, premiered in 1983) and ''Escape'' (choreographed by Leigh Warren and Kaiji Moriyama (2011; part of the 5th

OzAsia Festival OzAsia Festival, or simply OzAsia, is an Asia-focused arts festival in South Australia, presented by the Adelaide Festival Centre for two weeks in late October to early November each year. It features theatre, dance, music, film and visual arts ...

, and with music by

Simon Tedeschi Simon Tedeschi (born 1 May 1981) is an Australian classical pianist and writer. Early life Tedeschi was born in Gosford to Mark Tedeschi QC, Senior Crown Prosecutor for New South Wales, and doctor Vivienne Tedeschi, the daughter of a Poli ...

) * ''Quick Brown Fox'': a collaboration with William Forsythe (for the 2001

Melbourne Festival Melbourne International Arts Festival, formerly Spoleto Festival Melbourne – Festival of the Three Worlds, then Melbourne International Festival of the Arts, becoming commonly known as Melbourne Festival, was a major international arts festi ...

) * ''Petroglyths — Signs of Life'': a collaboration with Gina Rings (2005 & 2008) * ''medico manouevres'' (2007 & 2009) * ''Seven'' (2008) *

Astor Piazzolla Astor Pantaleón Piazzolla (, ; March 11, 1921 – July 4, 1992) was an Argentine tango composer, bandoneon player, and arranger. His works revolutionized the traditional tango into a new style termed '' nuevo tango'', incorporating elements f ...

's ''

Maria de Buenos Aires Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial *170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 *Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, d ...

'' with

State Opera of South Australia State Opera South Australia (SOSA) is a professional opera company in Adelaide, South Australia, established in 1976. History State Opera South Australia was established in 1976 as a statutory corporation under the ''State Opera of South Aus ...

(2010) * The

Philip Glass Philip Glass (born January 31, 1937) is an American composer and pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century. Glass's work has been associated with minimalism, being built up from repetitive ...

Trilogy, first separately, and then in its entirety (August 2014, at

Her Majesty's Theatre, Adelaide Her Majesty's Theatre is a theatre in Adelaide, South Australia, located on Grote Street, originally built in 1913 as the New Tivoli Theatre. Other names through its history have been the Princess Theatre (before it was first opened), the Prince ...

, choreographed by Warren) ** '' Akhnaten'' (also on its own in 2002 in Adelaide and 2003 in Melbourne) **''

Einstein on the Beach ''Einstein on the Beach'' is an opera in four acts composed by Philip Glass and directed by theatrical producer Robert Wilson, who also collaborated with Glass on the work's libretto. The opera eschews traditional narrative in favor of a formali ...

'' (also on its own in 2006 at the Festival Theatre, Adelaide, in the Festival Centre) **''

Satyagraha Satyagraha ( sa, सत्याग्रह; ''satya'': "truth", ''āgraha'': "insistence" or "holding firmly to"), or "holding firmly to truth",' or "truth force", is a particular form of nonviolent resistance or civil resistance. Someone ...

'' (also on its own in 2007 at the

Dunstan Playhouse Adelaide Festival Centre, Australia's first multi-purpose arts centre and the home of South Australia's performing arts, was built in the 1970s, designed by Hassell Architects. The Festival Theatre opened in June 1973 with the rest of the cent ...

in the Festival Centre) * ''Reassessment'': (August 2014,

, choreographed by Daniel Jaber)

Awards

1997 – Inaugural Adelaide Critics' Circle Award *Best Performance by a Group — LWD for ''Quiver'' 1999 –

Australian Dance Awards The Australian Dance Awards recognise excellence and promote dance in Australia. They are awarded under the auspices of the Australian Dance Council (Ausdance) for performance, choreography, design, dance writing, teaching and related professions. ...

*Outstanding Performance by a Dance Company — for ''Masterpieces of the 20thC'' *Best Choreography — Leigh Warren for ''Shimmer'' *Outstanding Performance by an Individual Dance Artist — Delia Silvan for ''Silent Cries'' 2000 – The

Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards The Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards were created in 1984 by the trustees of the Sidney Myer Fund to mark the 50th anniversary of the death of Sidney Myer. The awards were created to commemorate his life and his love for the arts. They inten ...

*Group Award Winner 2001 –

Green Room Award The Green Room Awards are peer awards which recognise excellence in cabaret, dance, drama, fringe theatre, musical theatre and opera in Melbourne. The awards were started in 1982 when Blair Edgar and Steven Tandy formed the Green Room Awards A ...

*Best Female Performer — Rachel Jenson for ''Quick Brown Fox'' *Best Male Performer — Peter Furness for ''Quick Brown Fox'' *Best Ensemble — ''Quick Brown Fox'' 2002 – Adelaide Critics' Circle *Commendation for ''Akhnaten'' 2003 – Green Room Award *Best Dance Ensemble — for ''Akhnaten'' 2004 – Adelaide Critics' Circle *Individual Award — Leigh Warren for ''Einstein on the Beach'' (Parts 3 & 4) 2005 – Adelaide Critics' Circle *Innovation Award — Leigh Warren and Gina Rings for ''Petroglyphs — Signs of Life'' 2010 – Australia Business Arts Foundation (AbaF) inaugural Arts & Health Foundation Award *Leigh Warren & Dancers with the

Flinders Medical Centre Flinders Medical Centre (FMC) is a major public tertiary hospital and teaching school, co-located with Flinders University and the 130 bed Flinders Private Hospital located at Bedford Park, South Australia South Australia (commonly abbrevi ...

for ''medico manouevres''

In film

A number of dancers from the company performed in the film ''

The Diaries of Vaslav Nijinsky ''The Diaries of Vaslav Nijinsky'' is a 2001 Australian film written, shot, directed and edited by Paul Cox about Vaslav Nijinsky, based on the premier danseur's published diaries. Cox had the idea of making a film about Nijinsky for over 30 ye ...

'' (2001), made by Paul Cox.Andrew L. Urban, "Cox, Paul: NijinskY", ''Urban Cinefile'', 25 April 2002
accessed 6 August 2019.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Leigh Warren and Dancers Dance companies in Australia Contemporary dance companies Performing arts in Adelaide 1993 establishments in Australia Dance schools in Australia