About
Hold Tight was made in 2022 as a response to world events and personal loss.
With an ensemble of four young people and four adults, it was a challenging work to create, emerging from lock down and the Covid 19 pandemic and concerned by the Russian invasion of Ukraine which sent ripples across Europe. A further influence on the production was Aurora’s work with refugees on the Poland / Belarus border and the horrors she witnessed there.
Hold Tight features lullabies recorded with Ukrainian refugees living in Poland. The work (like the world felt at the time) is broken, unfinished and fragmented, attempting to piece together something in a hostile, rubbish strewn, chaotic environment, with children offering our only pathways out of the darkness and into the light.
Despite the company’s best efforts, with global events weighing heavy on our minds and personal struggles with emotional overwhelm, mental health issues and family tragedies following the pandemic, we should have waited another year to make this work, instead of which we made it, toured it and tried our best to Hold Tight.
Hold Tight was supported by South East Dance.
Credits
Directed and Designed by
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.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 socially engaged movement practice and particularly around her campaigning, creative health work with women at risk, raiaing awareness of violence against women and girls and championing gender equality.
Vincent has long been an advocate for parents and carers working in the performing arts, supporting flexible working and welcoming collaborators children into the working space. Her pioneering work on film with Film Maker Bosie Vincent ensured VDT could distribute VDT’s work throughout the Covid 19 crisis in 2020, work which is no also screened and applied in social work, sociology, creative health and safeguarding training contexts
Charlotte is an experienced keynote 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 Liz Aggiss as V&A Artefacts, curated a 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 in the 2000’s the and Steering Group for Dance UK’s National Choreographic Conference in 2013.
Vincent is Designated Safeguarding Lead for VDT, trained in Trauma Informed Practice, Mental Health First Aid, therapeutic parenting and First Aid. She has completed the Clore Leadership Short Course (2010), the Clore Programme for CEO/Artistic Directors (2011/ 2022) and Clore Brave Conversations Programme (2013) and also trained in FA Football Coaching (2022-2024).
Vincent ‘s work ifs included in several Routledge Publications and MA and PhD students’ dissertations. Her work Art of Attachment lies at the heart of Dr Cath Lambert‘s book Troubling Adoption.
In 2023, 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.
Devised and Performed by
Robert Clark
Artistic Associate / Collaborator (He /Him)
Robert Clark was a contemporary dance performer, choreographer and teacher working across Europe and the USA. Robert initially trained at the Laban Centre London BA (hons), before going on to complete his training at London Contemporary Dance School with EDge. Robert worked with VDT from 2011 -2025 as Artistic Associate and Collaborator, devising and performing Broken Chords (2005), Motherland (2012), Underworld (21/21 in 2014), Virgin Territory (2016), Virgin Territory Film Installation (2017), Shut Down (2017), Shut Down Film Installation (2018), Art of Attachment (2018), In Loco Parentis (2020), Art of Attachment on Film (2021), Hold Tight (2022) and PLAY (2024) where he worked as Rehearsal Director and stage manager of the young people inmvolved. Work with other companies include Charles Linehan Dance Comapny, 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. Robert’s own choreographic work has been recognised with the Simone Michelle Choreography Award and selection for the “Escalator Dance” programme, becoming a supported artist in the Eastern region of England. Robert was a Work Place (associate) Artist with The Place, London, Resident Artist with Greenwich Dance, Londonand Associate with Dance4 in Nottingham, England. Robert was commissioned by Mapdance (University of Chichester), Wellcome Collection, Academy of Dramatic Art Zagreb and Koreokroj (Croatia). In 2024/5 Robert began a new career in Paediatric Physiotherapy in London.
Antonia Grove
Artistic Associate / Collaborator (She/Her)
Toni is a choreographer, writer, filmmaker, facilitator, lecturer and award-winning performer with over two decades experience leading Contemporary Dance and cross-artform collaborations. As Artistic Director of Probe (2004-2018), Toni created ‘boundary-blurring’ (The Times) multidisciplinary, experimental productions, devising and performing work commissioned by internationally celebrated choreographers, directors, writers and cross artform collaborators.
As a performer she has worked with Rambert Dance Company, Walker Dance Park Music, Company Wayne Mcgregor, The National Theatre, Bonachela Dance Company, Teac Damsa, The Cholmondeleys, Charles Linehan Company, Clod Ensemble and Vincent Dance Theatre (VDT). Performing physically & technically demanding contemporary dance repertoire (Merce Cunningham, Mats Ek, Christopher Bruce, Jiri Kylian, Richard Alston, Siobhan Davies, Ohad Naharin etc), alongside cross artform dance and theatre work (Lindsey Kemp, Lea Anderson, Michael Keegan-Dolan, Wendy Houstoun, Matthias Sperling, New Art Club etc).
Toni has worked with VDT since 2015, performing and collaborating on: Underworld, Virgin Territory, Art of Attachment, Hold Tight and a short site specific piece, Place for Reflection. Toni was a winner of the first Place Prize in work by Rafael Bonachela, has been nominated 3 times for Critics Circle National Dance Awards best female dancer (modern – including for VDT’s Virgin Territory) and for a Time Out Live Award. Her work with Probe gained the Guglielmo Ebreo Award and a London Theatre Award nomination. After six full-length touring productions with Probe Toni now leads projects under her own name.
She regularly leads, facilitates and designs trauma-attuned creative spaces for mixed ability and multi-generational groups / individuals to find artistic expression through art/dance with safety and access at the core.
Toni obtained her MA: Creative Practice from Trinity Laban, researching relationships between female hormones and creativity. She has 3 children and is an activist for mothers working in the arts.
Toni worked as VDT’s Participation Producer from 2025 – 2026, establishing our inaugural programme of movement sessions for Young People at Moulsecoomb Hall in East Brighton.
Photo: Jo Thorne
Janusz Orlik
Artistic Associate
Janusz Orlik is a performer, choreographer and dance practitioner.
After graduating from ballet school in Warsaw, Janusz became a student of Brucknerkonservatorium Linz in Austria. During his studies he became a founding member of x.IDA Dance Co. and performed in productions created by Olga Cobos, Peter Mika, Catherine Guérin, Rebekka Murgi, Nicole Caccivio and Charlotte Vincent. Since 2002, Janusz has been a regular member of Vincent Dance Theatre. Simultaneously, Janusz creates his own choreographic works, including “Exérèse monobloc” (2004), “and thy neighbour as thyself” (2006), “Live on stage” (2008), “The Rite of Spring” (2011), “Insight” (2013) awarded by The Minister of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland for Janusz Orlik and Joanna Leśnierowska for the best choreography granted as part of Polish Dance Platform 2014, “Mute” (2018) and “Koda (a tribute)” (2019). In 2007 he performed in “nothing” by towarzystwo gimnastyczne and in 2009 in “Happy” by Nigel Charnock, in which he was also involved as choreographer’s assistant.
In 2010 Janusz joined Kwaad Bloed Company performing in “Forces”. In 2011 he joined Nigel Charnock + Company to create new work “Ten Men”. In the same year, he collaborated and performed in “Reconstruction” by Joanna Leśnierowska and in 2012 with Gary Clarke performing in “Horsemeat”. In 2013 he began a collaboration with Daniel Landau. In 2014 he performed in “… (Rooms by the sea) from the series Exercises in Looking” by Joanna Leśnierowska, in “Unintended Consequences” by Sjoerd Vreugdenhil, “Back to bone” by Rosalind Crisp and “Collective Jumps” by Isabelle Schad. In 2015 he performed in an excerpt of “Shirtology” by Jérôme Bel. In 2016 he worked as a movement director in “Ojczyzna” (Polish Theatre in Poznań), collaborated and performed in Polish-Brazilian production “Yanka Rudzka Project: Leavining”. In 2018 he collaborated and performed in Polish-Brazilian-Georgian-Armenian production “Yanka Rudzka Project: Polyphonies”.
Janusz is an author of a series of dance and movement workshops “Moved” which in a cyclical form took place throughout 2018 in cooperation with various institutions in Poland. Other works include “High heels” for the ballet ensemble of The Opera House in Kraków, “Alpha” for The Contemporary Dance Scene in Poznań, “Adagio” for the Musical Theatre in Poznań. As well as performing Janusz delivers movement and choreographic workshops in various venues, dance schools and community centres in Poland and abroad. Scholar of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland in 2011 and 2018.
Aurora Lubos
Artistic Associate
As an independent artist she created solo performances “Knife, Horse and Stairs.”, “Unfinished” and “Zanzibar”, and installation/performances “Still Alive” (2011) and “Food Cycle” (2011), ” Four corners” (2010), ” .No 1″ (2003), and several short animations “winter 2010”. In 2005 she was nominated to The Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative. In the past she has worked extensively with Dance Theatre of Gdansk and Dada von Bzdülöw. She collaborated with Avi Kaiser, Tatiana Baganowa, Jerzy Mazzoll, Bronek Duży. With other three artist Jacek Staniszewski, Oskar Martin and Patrycja Kujawska she co-founded KLM’S Group and created “Te Takie Te”.
Aurora first came across VDT’s work when Charlotte was invited to Gdansk to workshop choreographic ideas as part of the Baltic University of Dance Winter Explosion festival. For VDT Aurora has performed in Caravan of Lies (1999), made and toured Drop Dead Gorgeous (2001), Let The Mountains Lead You To Love (2003), Punch Drunk (2004), Broken Chords (2005), Fairy Tale (2006), Look At Me Now, Mummy (2007), If We Go On (2009) and Motherland (2012-2014). Aurora lives in Poland.
Young Performers
Tia
Young Artistic Associate
Tia joined VDT to create and tour In Loco Parentis in 2020, a production cut short by the Covid pandemic. She joined the company again in 2022 to create Hold Tight and in 2024 to create PLAY, VDT’s 30 year retrospective production, commissioned by Brighton Dome and performed at the iconic Corn Exchange in Brighton.
Following PLAY, Tia has continued her involvement with VDT’s young people’s programme, by taking part in the weekly movement sessions at Moulsecoomb Hall. She was also part of a live performance in June 2026 with Antonia Grove at the launch event for ‘A Place for Reflection’ – a new sculpture by Simon Cooley with East Brighton Trust and Cathedral Group on the lawns at Moulsecoomb Place.
She now joins Vincent Dance Theatre as a Young Artistic Associate, supporting our Young Perfomers Collective who will be working towards a production in Spring/Summer 2027.
Understudy
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.
Lighting Design by
Nigel Edwards
Lighting Design
Nigel Edwards has been working with VDT since Virgin Territory in 2017 and subsequent shows, Shut Down, Art of Attachment and In Loco Parentis. He has also worked with Forced Entertainment for 29 years, Remote Control/Michael Laub for 17 years, The People Show for 7 plus Dessert Island Dances, Dance Dance Dance and 50 Acts for Wendy Houstoun. He has worked as a lighting designer on Lanark (The Citizens) Cleansed, 448 Psychosis (The Royal Court), Crave (Paines Plough), Robert Zucco, Victoria, The Tempest (RSC) as well as The Maid (ENO) and Hansel and Gretel (Opera North). He has also designed and toured with Ryuichi Sakamoto and Carsten Nicolai, Yellow Magic Orchestra, Jeff Beck and Nightmares on wax.
Recent engagements: Lighting Designer The Tell-Tale Heart (National Theatre); Flutter (Natalia Osipova at Saddlers Wells); The Lion and the Cobra (Christeene at the Barbican); Rolling (Michael Laub).
Production Managers
Mat Ort
Production Manager
Over the past 15 years Mat has worked as Production and Technical Manager for a diverse range of theatre, dance and arts companies delivering touring productions, site specific work, international arts festivals and numerous one-off site responsive commissions. Companies include Salisbury International Arts Festival, Inside Out Dorset Festival, Milton Keynes International Festival, Inside Out Dorset Festival, In Between Time Festival, The World Famous, National Theatre of Scotland, Frantic Assembly, Dreamthinkspeak, AndNow:, Bgroup, Vincent Dance Theatre, Theo Clinkard Dance, Probe, Unlimited Theatre, New Movement Collective, Stan Won’t Dance, Paines Plough and Trestle Theatre.
Videos
Photos
Hold Tight rehearsal, 2022. Credit: Bosie Vincent.
Hold Tight rehearsal, 2022. Credit: Bosie Vincent.
Hold Tight rehearsal, 2022. Credit: Bosie Vincent.
Hold Tight rehearsal, 2022. Credit: Bosie Vincent.
Hold Tight rehearsal, 2022. Credit: Bosie Vincent.
Hold Tight rehearsal, 2022. Credit: Bosie Vincent.
Hold Tight rehearsal, 2022. Credit: Bosie Vincent.
Hold Tight rehearsal, 2022. Credit: Bosie Vincent.
Hold Tight rehearsal, 2022. Credit: Bosie Vincent.
Hold Tight rehearsal, 2022. Credit: Bosie Vincent.
Hold Tight rehearsal, 2022. Credit: Bosie Vincent.
Hold Tight rehearsal, 2022. Credit: Bosie Vincent.
Press
“The intensity of the work had me gripped throughout. The multiple and layered references to the reality we find ourselves in, combined with the rollercoaster like structure kept me on the edge of my seat”
Emily Davies, Brewery Arts Engagement Officer: Dance, 2022
Audience Feedback
“An amazing, moving, thought provoking performance.”
“It was wonderful to see HOLD TIGHT last night. Such a strong provocation that forces the audience to witness our times and what is happening in Ukraine. What is the impact of this war and how is it influencing the present and the future?”
“This show made me laugh out loud and sob at the end. It is right to be deeply affected by theatre. It was poignant to have children as part of this story. I can’t get the show out of my mind. The acting and dancing were beautiful, gripping and surprising. It was ok to show real distress and loud shots and bombs to shake us up. We need to see the individual in their plight and not shrug people off. We need to engage.”
“Tough but honest, disarming insight and account of the ‘human condition’…This was not a rescue operation but a window on the secret that we speak of as empathy and compassion. The machinery of war and seeming helpless, endless fall into violence is the very soil where that gift of new life is given and nurtured. The dance passages of disclosure and mysticism interpreted by the damp mist, living forms and birdsong.”
“Our Performing Arts students watched VDT at Brewery Arts on Wednesday and then had a workshop opportunity with the company in our studio! Thank you to Janusz & Aurora for delivering two thought provoking movement sessions!”
“Wow. Beautiful, heart wrenching and thought provoking.”
“So glad I made the trip to Barbican Theatre this evening to watch Hold Tight by Vincent Dance Theatre. Such beautiful choreography and every person on that stage was captivating. Just getting rid of the tension headache from all the feels...”
“Forgot how much a loved contact work, lifting and being lifted. Also enjoyed observing the caring / intense duets in the space. Great workshop with Vincent Dance Theatre at Arts Centre Edgehill University.”
“After being blown away by Hold Tight by Vincent Dance Theatre at Unity Theatre last Fri, I can’t wait to attend their workshop today at Arts Centre Edgehill University.”
“Such intelligent and provocative dance theatre.”
“I urge you to go and see ‘Hold Tight’ by Vincent Dance Theatre - an amazing, moving, thought provoking performance. Thanks for an incredible show!”
“Well that was heart wrenching, painful and beautiful in so many ways… congrats to everyone.”
“a magnificent response to what we have been through and a remarkable ‘object’ in itself. One aspect of which was the quality of dancing itself, the pace, the attention and collaboration between performers and the exhilarating young dancers, whose inclusion inherently created hope and real agency.”
