OBE
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 ...
is a contemporary dance choreographer. He was born in
Fiji
Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...
and raised and educated in
New Zealand
New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
. He was the
Artistic Director
An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre company or dance company, who handles the organization's artistic direction. They are generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogu ...
University of Auckland
The University of Auckland (; Māori: ''Waipapa Taumata Rau'') is a public research university based in Auckland, New Zealand. The institution was established in 1883 as a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. Initially loc ...
and trained with the New Zealand Dance Centre before joining the
Royal New Zealand Ballet
The Royal New Zealand Ballet is a ballet company based in Wellington, New Zealand. It was originally known as The New Zealand Ballet Company.
History
New Zealand Ballet was established in 1953 as an independent charitable trust by Royal Danis ...
. He was also one of the founding members of the
Limbs Dance Company
The Limbs Dance Company was formed in Auckland, New Zealand in May 1977 and disbanded in Wellington in September 1989. Limbs was "the first contemporary dance company in New Zealand to win a general following", and performed alongside notable New Z ...
. He joined Rambert Ballet Company in 1980 and remained with the company for 10 years. He was the Resident Choreographer at
Sadler's Wells
Sadler's Wells Theatre is a London performing arts venue, located in Rosebery Avenue, Islington. The present-day theatre is the sixth on the site. Sadler's Wells grew out of a late 17th-century pleasure garden and was opened as a theatre buil ...
, London, where he established the Mark Baldwin Dance Company (1993–2001). He created over 40 works for his new company and other major dance companies including:
The Royal Ballet
The Royal Ballet is a British internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London, England. The largest of the five major ballet companies in Great Britain, the Royal Ballet was founded ...
,
Royal New Zealand Ballet
The Royal New Zealand Ballet is a ballet company based in Wellington, New Zealand. It was originally known as The New Zealand Ballet Company.
History
New Zealand Ballet was established in 1953 as an independent charitable trust by Royal Danis ...
, Berlin State Opera House,
Phoenix Dance Theatre
Phoenix Dance Theatre is a dance company based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, that has grown from small beginnings in inner-city Leeds to be one of Britain’s leading contemporary dance
Contemporary dance is a genre of Concert dance, danc ...
,
Scottish Ballet
Scottish Ballet is the national ballet company of Scotland and one of the five leading ballet companies of the United Kingdom, alongside the Royal Ballet, English National Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet and Northern Ballet. Founded in 1 ...
, London City Ballet and Rambert Dance Company. He was Resident Choreographer for Scottish Ballet in 1996.
In December 2002, Baldwin returned to Rambert as Artistic Director and since then the company has won several awards including the Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Dance in 2010 in recognition of the previous years' repertoire, and in 2011, the Critics' Circle National Dance Award 2010 for Outstanding Company.
Baldwin's first work for Rambert as Artistic Director was ''Constant Speed'' in 2005. Since then he has created ''Eternal Light'' and ''The Comedy of Change''. In 2006 he choreographed ''The Wedding'' for the Royal New Zealand Ballet, and collaborated with Amanda Eyles to restage
Andrée Howard
Andrée Howard (3 October 1910 – 18 April 1968), originally Louise Andréa Enriqueta Howard, was a British ballet dancer and choreographer. She created over 30 ballets.
Early life
Louise Andréa Enriqueta HowardTMA Theatre Award for Achievement in Dance for ''Constant Speed'' and an Oliver Award for his restaging of Michael Clark's ''Swamp''.
Baldwin was appointed
Officer of the Order of the British Empire
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" in the
2015 Birthday Honours
The 2015 Queen's Birthday Honours were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours were awarded as ...