'Dance training in UK is so poor we have to hire foreign performers'

Three of Britain’s top choreographers today condemned the standard of contemporary dance training in UK schools and claimed they have to recruit performers from abroad.

Akram Khan, Hofesh Schechter and Lloyd Newson issued a joint statement at the start of a major conference on UK dance, expressing their dismay at declining standards and the need for action to reverse the trend.

They feared that British colleges were not providing training to meet the demands of professional companies, although the problem started with the lack of dance provision in schools.

Lloyd Newson, the artistic director of London’s DV8 Physical Theatre, said: “As leading contemporary dance companies, we would hope to employ graduates from a number of institutions, which are all in receipt of public subsidy as well as student tuition fees.

“Unfortunately the students, more often than not, lack rigour, technique and performance skills.” He said he had spoken to 10 other UK dance companies who shared this view.

Akram Khan, who performed at the 2012 Olympics opening ceremony, said only four of 51 dancers his company had employed since 2000 were UK-trained and the training itself now seemed an obstacle to British dancers’ success.

“I am concerned that somewhere, somehow, the training the young dancers go through in the UK is not supporting them in the rigour, technique and discipline that I am looking for in a dancer,” he added.

UK-based Israeli choreographer Hofesh Shechter said he got to know and care about undergraduates of the top dance schools when they attended his company’s workshops and classes.

“It’s disheartening when it comes to auditions to see these UK students with potential and enthusiasm consistently outclassed by fitter, stronger and more versatile counterparts from Europe, Asia and the US,” he added today.

“We must find a way to level the playing field and work together as a sector to address the widening gap between our requirements as employers and the skills UK graduates emerge with.”