About
To celebrate our 30th Anniversary (1994-2024), VDT presented a brand new live production PLAY at Brighton Dome Corn Exchange, made and performed by four local young people and brilliant Polish collaborator Aurora Lubos.
Tracing an unreliable timeline through past works, PLAY reflects on the emotional upheaval of the last few years and celebrates young people’s incredible resilience and imagination in the face of huge personal and societal change.
Performed at Brighton Dome Corn Exchange on 14 March 2024.
Commissioned by Brighton Dome and Brighton Festival.
VDT is Associate Company at Brighton Dome and Brighton Festival. VDT is a National Portfolio Organisation, funded by Arts Council England.
PLAY emerged from workshops with young people across Brighton and Sussex, throughout 2023. With thanks to All Sorts, Third Space, Hummingbird Refugee Group, South East Dance Boys Group, Theatre Workshop, B Starz Academy, B-Fest at Brighton Youth Centre, Ceyda Tanc’s Youth Group, BACA, Youth Drama Group in Newhaven, Hazel Court School in Eastbourne, Sir Robert Woodard Academy in Lancing, Cavendish School Eastbourne and participants at VDT’s 2023 Summer School, supported by Brighton Holiday and Food (HAF) Programme.
It’s fascinating to glimpse the worlds she’s created – wry, amusing, wistful, eccentric – and her progression as an artist. Vincent’s commitment to working with young people suggests a faith in the future.
The Guardian
Credits
Director
Charlotte Vincent
Artistic Director & Chief Executive (She/Her)
Charlotte formed Vincent Dance Theatre (VDT) in 1994 and has directed all the company’s collaborative work to date, on stage and on film. Vincent has also designed the work since 2005 and performed with the company until 2002. Vincent’s distinctive, contemporary choreography ‘stages ideas’ and embeds her own and her collaborators’ lived experience within the work, raising awareness of personal and political issues, breaking down the barriers between professional and non-professional performers and in VDT’s film installation and engagement spaces, between audience and participant.
Vincent is recognised as a sector leader in movement based socially engaged creative practice and creative health, particularly around her work with care-experienced young people and women at risk, championing gender equality and advocating for best practice to support parents and carers working in the performing arts. Her pioneering work on film ensired VDT were ‘covid ready and able to work through Covid and consequently allows Vincent’s work to be purposefully ‘applied’ in non-arts settings as well within conventional arts venues and settings.
Charlotte is an experienced speaker, lecturer and Mentor, working with early and mid-career artists to develop their creative practice and production work. Vincent has also worked as a director, dramaturg, and facilitator for other artists and companies, most notably Two Destination Language (Near Gone, winner Total Theatre Awards for Innovation and Experimentation 2014), Keira Martin (Here Comes Trouble Sadlers Wells Wild Card and Good Blood) and facilitating early R&D for Sue MacLaine’s Can I Start Again Please (2013).
In the past, Vincent has performed and collaborated with Professor Liz Aggiss as V&A Artefacts, curated an inaugural 4-week festival of experimental performance practice, Juncture at Yorkshire Dance in Leeds and co-hosted The Table, a forum to nurture dialogue across disciplines between established female artists with Dr Claire Macdonald. Charlotte sat on the Artists Advisory Group at Yorkshire Dance for several years and Steering Group for Dance UK’s National Choreographic Conference in 2013. Most recently she has been a driving force behind the development of the London Road Network in Brighton, a collaborative group of organisations and individuals working towards deeper interaction between arts orgs and grassroots organisations in one of Brighton’s more deprived areas.
Vincent is Safeguarding Lead for VDT, trained in Trauma Informed Practice, Mental Health First Aid, therapeutic parenting, and First Aid. She completed a Clore Leadership Short Course (2010), the Clore Programme for CEO/Artistic Directors (2011) and Clore Brave Conversations Programme (2013). Vincent is also trained in FA Football Coaching.
Vincent has written chapters and been written about in several Routledge Publications (resources) and PhD’s, and her work Art of Attachment lies at the heart of Dr Cath Lambert‘s imminent publication Troubling Adoption.
In 2023, Dr Vincent gained a PhD in Performing Arts from Canterbury Christ Church University, reflecting on VDT’s socially engaged practice, supervised by Professor Angela Pickard, Director of the Sidney de Haan Centre for Arts and Health.
Dr Charlotte Vincent lives in Brighton with her son, who loves mountain biking, fishing and gaming.
Composer
Jules Maxwell
Sound Design
Jules Maxwell has composed music for a wide variety of choreographers over the last 20 years, including Wayne McGregor, Dog Kennel Hill Project, Jasmin Vardimon, Jane Mason, Cathy Marston, Charlotte Darbyshire, Theo Clinkard, Filip Van Huffel, New Art Club, Laila Diallo, Charlotte Darbyshire, Hofesh Schecter and Jeanine Durning.
His background is in theatre and he regularly works at the National Theatre, The Young Vic and Shakespeare’s Globe. He also has a long standing relationship with artist Mark Storor with whom he has created many small and large scale promenade and circus pieces.
He composed the soundtrack to Tim Loane’s Oscar nominated short film Dance Lexie Dance (1996).
As a musician and song writer he has collaborated with Dead Can Dance, Foy Vance, Iain Archer and Duke Special.
He has recently co-written a collection of songs with Lisa Gerrard for a forthcoming album by Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares.
At the heart of his music and practice is a curiosity to find links across theatrical disciplines. He is as interested in drama as he is in sound. He cannot avoid hearing music in movement and light and language. He is drawn to the truth found in flaws and scars and people singing badly.
Since moving to France he has begun presenting monthly solo concerts of his own songs in the Café Gallery where he now lives.
Artistic Associate
Robert Clark
Artistic Associate
Robert Clark is a contemporary dance performer, choreographer and teacher working across Europe and the USA.
Robert worked with VDT since 2011 as a collaborator on many of our productions. He became Artistic Associate in 2022, faciltiating workshops and writing resources, also working as Rehearsal Director on PLAY in 2024.
Other companies include: Charles Linehan, Fevered Sleep, Sasha Waltz and Guests, Cie Felix Ruckert, Cie Soit/Hans van Der Broek, Le Grand Jeu/Louis Zeigler, Lisa Torun Dance Company, Barebones (Rui Horta and Garry Stewart/Australian Dance Theatre), Ben Wrights Bgroup, Alletta Collins and Troika Ranch amongst others.
Robert’s choreographic work has been recognised through a number of awards and prizes including the Simone Michelle Choreography Award and selection for the “Escalator Dance” programme, becoming a supported artist in the Eastern region of England. Robert has been; a Work place (associate) artist with The Place, London; a Resident Artist with Greenwich Dance, London; and an associate with Dance4 in Nottingham, England.
Robert regularly undertakes commission work. Recent commissions include work for Mapdance (University of Chichester), Wellcome Collection, Academy of Dramatic Art Zagreb and Koreokroj (Croatia).
Robert initially trained at the Laban Centre London BA (hons), before going on to complete his training at London Contemporary Dance School with EDge.
In 2024/5 Robert shifted his focus to pursue a career in Paediatric Physiotherapy in London.
Videos
Photos
Play, 2024. Photographer Credit: Chloe Hashemi
Play, 2024. Photographer Credit: Chloe Hashemi
Play, 2024. Photographer Credit: Chloe Hashemi
Play, 2024. Photographer Credit: Chloe Hashemi
Play, 2024. Photographer Credit: Chloe Hashemi
Play, 2024. Photographer Credit: Chloe Hashemi
Play, 2024. Photographer Credit: Chloe Hashemi
Play, 2024. Photographer Credit: Chloe Hashemi
Play, 2024. Photographer Credit: Chloe Hashemi
Press
“It’s fascinating to glimpse the worlds she’s created – wry, amusing, wistful, eccentric – and her progression as an artist. Vincent’s commitment to working with young people suggests a faith in the future… There may be uncertainty about what’s to come, but PLAY does make you think we should appreciate dance’s back catalogue more often”The Guardian
Choreographic Notebooks
Open journal pages with handwritten notes and doodles. On the left, small buildings are sketched with annotations. On the right, book review notes, ratings, and a partially visible map on the side. The tone is informal and analytical.
