Solange Urdang is a British activist, co-founder of the

Black British Theatre Awards The Black British Theatre Awards (BBTAs) have been presented annually since 2019 to recognise excellence among Black performers, creatives and productions in the UK. History The BBTAs were established in 2019 and first awarded in October of that ...

(BBTA) and CEO of the

Urdang Academy Urdang, previously known as The Urdang Academy, is a performing arts academy based in Islington, London. The school was founded as a ballet school under the direction of Leonie Urdang; after her death her daughter and CEO Solange Urdang succeeded ...

(from 2001 until 2022), founded by her late mother Leonie.

Personal life

Urdang is the daughter of Leonie Urdang, founder of the

in London in 1970. Leonie was originally from

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

and fled the country in the 1960s because of the consequences of

apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English: , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...

. Urdang herself studied at the academy (Lower and Upper Schools) and at the

High School of Performing Arts The High School of Performing Arts (informally known as "PA") was a public alternative high school established in 1947 and located at 120 West 46th Street in the borough of Manhattan, New York City, from 1948 to 1984. In 1961, the school was ...

in New York. On 4 May 2024 she was invested as an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (

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 ...

), recognising her career dedicated to uplifting marginalised communities through the creative arts. The ceremony took place at

Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a List of British royal residences, royal residence at Windsor, Berkshire, Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, about west of central London. It is strongly associated with the Kingdom of England, English and succee ...

and was conducted by

Prince William William, Prince of Wales (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982), is the heir apparent to the British throne. He is the elder son of King Charles III and Diana, Princess of Wales. William was born during the reign of his p ...

Urdang Academy

Urdang took over the role of CEO of the Urdang Academy from her mother, Leonie, from 2001 until 2022. She continued her mother's legacy and carried over her vision to break barriers in the dance world. Urdang was instrumental in moving the school to the Old Finsbury Town Hall location (from its previous Covent Garden base), its expansion and most recently its acquisition by City University, London.

The Dang Collective

In 2021 Urdang started the Dang Collective, a new Arts and Education Company, focusing on pre-vocational and professional training in dance and musical theatre. The Collective officially launched on 1 August 2022. Its divisions include: -the Dang Academy, offering training with professionals from the West End -the Dang Theatre and Dance Syllabus -the Dang Global -Dang part-time courses and associates, short courses in dance and musical theatre -link talent agency

Black British Theatre Awards

In 2018 Urdang co-founded the

with Omar F. Okai to recognize black excellence in British theatre. The awards are held yearly since and categories include performers, directors, writers, producers and all the behind the scenes technicians.

References

External links

Black British Theatre Awards official website

The Dang official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Urdang, Solange Living people Dance Musical theatre 21st-century British women British activists Year of birth missing (living people)