John Ashford (6 July 1944 – 17 December 2023) was a British

contemporary dance Contemporary dance is a genre of Concert dance, 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 stron ...

producer who was Director of Aerowaves, the European network for research and presentation of emerging dance companies, which he founded in 1997. John Ashford was the first theatre editor at Time Out. He subsequently became Manager of the Theatre Upstairs at the

Royal Court Theatre The Royal Court Theatre, at different times known as the Court Theatre, the New Chelsea Theatre, and the Belgravia Theatre, is a West End theatre#London's non-commercial theatres, non-commercial theatre in Sloane Square, London, England, opene ...

, at a time when it was producing the early plays of

Sam Shepard Samuel Shepard Rogers III (November 5, 1943 – July 27, 2017) was an American playwright, actor, director, screenwriter, and author whose career spanned half a century. He wrote 58 plays as well as several books of short stories, essays, ...

and

Caryl Churchill Caryl Lesley Churchill (born 3 September 1938) is a British playwright known for dramatising the abuses of power, for her use of non- naturalistic techniques, and for her exploration of sexual politics and feminist themes.

, and

Richard O'Brien Richard O'Brien (born Richard Timothy Smith; 25 March 1942) is a British-New Zealand actor, writer, musician, and television presenter. He wrote the musical stage show ''The Rocky Horror Show'' in 1973, which has since remained in continuous p ...

Rocky Horror Show ''The Rocky Horror Show'' is a Musical theatre, musical with music, lyrics and book by Richard O'Brien. A humorous tribute to various B movies associated with the Science fiction film, science fiction and Horror film, horror genres from the 193 ...

. He was then appointed Director of the Theatre at the ICA, promoting seasons of experimental theatre, performance work and new rock bands. In 1985, he brought the Canadian dance company La La La Human Steps to London.Interview with John Ashford
Time Out London 8 June 2009 As Theatre Director of

The Place The Place may refer to: * The Place (London) The Place is a dance and performance centre in Duke's Road near Euston in the London Borough of Camden. It is the home of London Contemporary Dance School and the Robin Howard Dance Theatre, and forme ...

in London from 1986 to 2009, Ashford was instrumental in the growth of contemporary dance's popularity in the UK. He established the theatre as Britain's busiest dance venue, promoting the early works of companies including DV8, Adventures in Motion Pictures, V-tol Dance Company and Wayne McGregor Random Dance, and presenting the first UK performances from international artists such as Wim Vandekeybus,

Sasha Waltz Sasha Alexandra Waltz (born 8 March 1963, Karlsruhe) is a German choreographer, dancer and leader of the dance company Sasha Waltz and Guests. Biography Waltz is the daughter of an architect and a curator. At the age of five years she had her ...

and

Rui Horta Rui or RUI may refer to: Names * Rui (surname) (), a Chinese surname * Rui (given name), a given name of independent Portuguese, Japanese, or Chinese origin Places * Rui (state) (), a Chinese state during the Zhou Dynasty * Rui (village), a c ...

. In 2004, he created The Place Prize, a biennial choreography competition, which is the richest and most prestigious in UK dance. In 2002, Ashford was appointed a

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

for services to dance. He died from prostate cancer on 17 December 2023, at the age of 79.

References

External links

Aerowaves website
1944 births 2023 deaths Contemporary dance in the United Kingdom British theatre directors Commanders of the Order of the British Empire {{contemporary-dance-stub