Behind the Scenes: My Work Experience at The Place

As a dancer who has been dancing most of my life, dance has always been something to express myself. I came to The Place seeking wider knowledge about the dance and technical world to figure out if this would be a career I wanted to peruse. Throughout my week, I talked to many staff who have studied dance, film and acting at university as well as others who had studied in areas such as HR and journalism.

During the week, I was able to gain experience in the HR and Development, Costume and School Office departments, carrying out tasks that the staff would usually do. When in Development, I researched legacies for The Place’s website. I had no idea of legacies previous to this session and found it eye opening. It made me wonder whether doing a job in the mechanics of a dance organisation would appeal to me. Moreover, I was able to sit in on a meeting with the Classes & Courses department in which they were discussing disturbance in classes and safety protocols which are so key to a workplace and dance school running smoothly. I was really interested by this meeting as it made me realise I would love working in a department like this.

Subsequently, I was able to converse with the one of the technicians. This was very interesting as working in a theatre has also been something I have been considering. Being able to ask questions about the technical aspects of theatre was really helpful since I am still trying to consider my career pathway. Through looking at the theatre, I was intrigued by all the different jobs there are to do, such as lighting, sound and filming the shows. This confirmed to me that this is an area which I would love to work in.

The Place also organises a ‘Creative Learning show’ with local schools in Camden which I was lucky enough to watch. This show involved dancers going to the local schools and teaching the children a routine which also fits in with their curriculum. It was interesting to see how they adapted and constructed dances according to each class' curriculum. I haven’t seen a establishment combine the both education and dance on such a large scale so this was really inspiring. I was also able to watch this show's rehearsals earlier in the day. I found out that sometimes the technicians have as little as 3 hours to prepare for a show! This made me realise how much of a quick thinker you must be when doing this job. It was great to see that The Place is educating young people on dance and giving them the ability express themselves and get comfortable with performing.

As well as seeing younger people learning dance I was also fortunate enough to join in with the ‘Over 60’s Dance Class’. In doing so, I could talk to some of the dancers in that class who trained in dance and hear their opinions on the difference between the disciplined ballet and the more freeing contemporary style. It was fascinating to see there was live music as this is something I have not seen or experienced in my own classes.

Lastly, I was given the opportunity to watch the ‘Alston Rep Sharing’ show in which I saw various pieces performed by first year undergraduate students that were inspired by Richard Alston as well as created by him. It was great to see an insight into the work that the students do. It was an honor to watch a show dedicated to a person who is such a core part of The Place as well as contemporary dance itself.

The Place has a motto ‘dancing for life’ which was so present throughout the community. The experience has been great and I am so thankful for Tia in HR creating such broad timetable for me to experience so many departments. I am also so thankful for being able to meet such welcoming people during my week.

By Katrina Hague