Professional Classes

Aneta Zwierzynska's practice involves soft acrobatics, floor work, flying low, contact improvisation, and some capoeira concepts of playfulness.

At their core, these organic forms of movement focus on nature, creativity and improvisation, as well as an emphasis on spiral dynamic and the connection between body, mind and spirit.

During these sessions, you will investigate ways to incorporate the total physical awareness necessary for capoeira, whose roots partly lie in the art of fighting, into the more meditative world of release technique.

About:

Aneta is a professional dancer, capoeira teacher and choreographer. At Anton Bruckner University in Austria, she obtained a double MA, studying contemporary dance/movement research and dance pedagogy.

She has trained and worked in Poland, Greece, Portugal, France, Nepal, Austria, Brazil and the UK.

She has been teaching all around Europe and Brazil in places like Rambert Dance, Dan.c.e Athens, Greenwich Dance, Pineapple Studio, London Studio Center, South East Dance, Royal Dance Academy, The Place and Trip Space in London.

In 2016, she was selected to be the main choreographer for the opening ceremony of the European Capital of Culture.

Nothern Rascal's signature classes are an opportunity to step away from exterior noise and into your personal movement practice.

High-energy, bassy beats and improvisation focused, this practice is founded on celebrating the best version of self in the studio.

Expect to be led through a series of tasks and improvisational scores with opportunities to play, laugh and feel supported in every moment. Be wild, be messy, be more Rascal.⁠

About:

Led by Sam Ford and JV2 Alumni Anna Holmes, Northern Rascals is a dance theatre company based in Yorkshire. Established in 2017, the company is driven by social conscience and uses theatre and contemporary dance to lead audiences to original narratives rooted in the current socio-political climate.

Nationally recognised, Northern Rascals are renowned for their raw yet poetic interpretation of today’s world and the people that inhabit it and celebrated for their dedication to using Northern voices to spearhead that poeticism.

A fast-paced class drawing on Ceyda Tanc Dance's unique vocabulary, combining athletic contemporary movement with influences from Turkish folk dance. Expect rhythmic folk-inspired steps, intricate gestures and dynamic phrases designed to utilise your full physicality.

Starting with an extended warm-up that builds strength, stamina, and flexibility, the class progresses with turning and traveling drills followed by complex company repertory to hone technique and performance skills.

An empowering experience that draws on the strength and virtuosity of Turkish folk dance, this class is an opportunity to push your limits in a supportive, high-energy setting.

About:

Ceyda Tanc is a British-Turkish choreographer and movement director, and Artistic Director of Ceyda Tanc Dance. She trained at University of Roehampton and The State Turkish Conservatoire for Music and Folk Dance in Izmir, Turkey. Ceyda founded her all-female company in 2012, creating a body of professional contemporary dance works drawing on Turkish folk culture.

Ceyda’s full-length works KAYA (2018) & KIZLAR (2023) were commissioned by Brighton Festival and presented at Theatre Royal Brighton to sold-out audiences and critical acclaim (The Guardian, UK).

Ceyda presents live work in theatre settings, festivals (presented by Dance Umbrella, Dance East, Sadler’s Wells), galleries and alternative event spaces across the UK and in Türkiye.

In 2021 she advised on representation of Turkish folk dance in English National Ballet’s Raymonda and subsequently commissioned to create an original work for their Emerging Dancer competition.

In 2024 she co-created BACI with support from the British Council, a cross-cultural collaboration featuring 67 British and Turkish dancers and reaching over 2,550 people in Türkiye with live performances and workshops.

Ceyda is currently working alongside mentor, Aakash Odedra, as part of Sadler’s Well’s Artist Development programme.

Based on an experimental and physiological approach to flow and travel, Marso Riviere's movement signature style often evolves and is inspired from Martial arts, Breakin, Popping, Contemporary Release, Spirals, Yoga and various movement concepts.

What to expect:

• The class is focused on dance (as opposed to just “movement”), it will explore various topics like: musicality - how to flow between Breakin (Breakdance) and other movement techniques - refining extensions, and "released" versus "dynamic" movement execution.

• Trending moves/ soft-acro, weight distribution and movement concepts through short improvisation, traveling sequences and technical drills.

• The class is aimed at developing all professional dancers, from those in professional training through to Bboys/Bgirls/street dancers wanting to develop their range of movement or simply wanting to take part in a fun and physical dance class.

About:

Marso made his choreographic debuts in 2005 and whilst drawing inspiration from his pioneers (Robert Hylton, Victor Quijada) in hybrid movement genres and Hip Hop theatre, he developed his own language and methodology, blurring the lines between Capoeira, Breaking and Contemporary Dance.

Marso is known for his unique style of movement, creative thinking and exciting collaborations with Jonzi D, Damien Jalet, Carlos Acosta, HK APA, Rambert Dance Company, The Ballet Boyz, The BBC and numerous venues in the UK.

He delivers performance, visual and education work internationally.

Read his full bio here: www.marsoriviere.com/about

This guided improvisation class embraces the totality of movement infused and influenced by the vibrant rhythms of Afro-Cuban dance.

The class aims to deepen the bond between your mind and body, allowing you to be playful, provoke creativity, sync with pulsating rhythms, find your inner groove, and experience a sense of liberation while revitalising your body and spirit.

About:

Miguel Altunaga trained at Cuba's National School of Contemporary, Modern and Folk Dance, performing as a principal dancer with the National Contemporary Dance Company of Cuba for six years.

He joined Rambert in 2007, dancing in works by various esteemed choreographers. He has also performed with Hofesh Shechter Company, Akram Khan Company, and Lost Dog Company in collaboration with the Royal Opera House.

As a choreographer, Miguel has created works for Danza Contemporánea de Cuba, Phoenix Dance Theatre, Birmingham Royal Ballet, and more.

Notable accolades include the Cuban Best Male Solo Award and multiple Critics’ Circle National Dance Awards UK nominations.

This contemporary class focuses on developing flow and communication throughout the body to increase awareness and expand movement quality. The class takes inspiration from martial arts, movement culture and floorwork practices; and uses familiar forms to expand our creative reach.

Throughout the class, we will use set material, partner-based tasks, and improvisation to challenge and develop our physicality and creativity. The aim is to provide tools to expand individual movement vocabulary and enhance our physical awareness.

About:

Jannick Moth is a contemporary dance artist based in London. He trained at Trinity Laban, graduating in 2015. He is a Senior Dance Artist with Stopgap Dance, performing internationally (Frock/Lived Fiction). He has also worked as a performer for Errant/Vinicius Salles (Ox, Glitch), Abbott Dance theatre (Launch Day, Deeds Not Words) and Vivian Triantafyllopolou (Ego mas).

He has worked as rehearsal director for Olga Spiraki and Vivian Triantafyllopolou; and as a movement director for Scrum Theatre.

Jannick has also taught at Scottish Dance Theatre, Rambert Pro-class and others. He is also a certified Gaga teacher and teaches regularly across the UK.

Having trained in a plethora of dance genres, Liam Francis’ contemporary class explores an array of movement approaches. His class uses improvisation as the glue to connect exercises focused on alignment, coordination and rhythm. We will tendu, curve, roll and groove.

About:

Liam Francis is an award-nominated dancer, award-winning choreographer, movement director and facilitator.

With experiences as both a creator and performer across dance, theatre, film and television, Liam has enjoyed working with world renowned choreographers and organisations (e.g Rambert Dance Company, LostDog and ZooNation).

Liam is also the founder and director of FranDanCo and The Artistic Gremlins.

Yanaëlle Ritter’s classes use Cunningham technique to stimulate your brain as well as your body. You will warm up with back exercises and leg work in the centre before learning phrases that turn, travel, mobilise your spine and coordinate arm and leg actions. Expect exercises on 6 or 7 counts, not always 8!

Each class is structured around a key concept to help focus your practice. Experience in Cunningham or Cunningham-based techniques is preferable, but not necessary. Please note that one class will be filmed and shared with the Merce Cunningham Trust for Yanaëlle’s certification as a Cunningham Technique teacher.

About:

Yanaëlle Ritter is a Belgian-British dance artist based in Eastbourne. She trained at London Contemporary Dance School from 2012-2015, then gained a Diploma in Dance Teaching and Learning and a MA in Choreography.

Her choreographic practice swings between collaborations with musicians and site-specific performances. Yanaëlle teaches creative dance, contemporary technique and choreography at and for The Place, Sadler’s Wells, Eastbourne Dance Space, Trinity Laban and other organisations. She took part in Jeannie Steele’s CPD course on Cunningham Technique Fundamentals in 2023, and was selected to join the Merce Cunningham Trust’s teacher training programme in New York in July-August 2025.

Pepa Ubera’s professional class invites dancers to explore dynamic physicality through an interdisciplinary lens.

Rooted in her extensive choreographic research, the class integrates elements of somatic practices, release techniques, and embodied dramaturgy to cultivate a deeper connection between movement, imagination, and collective inquiry.

Through a blend of structured exercises and explorative tasks, participants will engage with notions of relationality, flow, and physical expansion, while developing a nuanced understanding of their own bodies in motion.

The session emphasises attentiveness to sensation, improvisational freedom within form, and the pleasure of dancing as a transformative, shared experience.

About:

Pepa Ubera is a choreographer and performer known for her innovative approach to dance and interdisciplinary performance. With a strong focus on feminist dramaturgy, pleasure activism, and posthumanist theories, her work blurs the boundaries between practice and theory, body and technology, human and non-human.

Her latest project, The Machine of Horizontal Dreams, is her most ambitious commission to date and will premiere at Sadler's Wells East in Autumn 2025.

Pepa’s creative practice often interrogates socio-political themes through immersive and collaborative performance landscapes, fostering collective dreaming and reimagining progress beyond traditional hierarchies.

This class begins with a focus on structural alignment, helping dancers understand and engage their bodies with precision.

The session progresses through a structured ballet class, approached through a contemporary lens, integrating traditional techniques with modern movement principles.

Dancers will then transition to dynamic movement across the space, culminating in an across-the-floor phrase, and concluding with jumps and petit allegro.

This methodical approach ensures a comprehensive development of both classical and contemporary dance skills.

About:

Julian Nichols, a dedicated Canadian-Italian choreographer and dancer, founded Bodies in Action in 2021. His mission is to create inclusive contemporary dance works that represent all identities. Julian's work has been recognized and supported by Arts Council England and the National Lottery Community Fund. Some of his notable works include Affirming Our Identity, The Problem, and the award-winning dance film Creature.

Julian has taught at prestigious institutions such as Rambert Dance Company and The Place. He holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Purchase College Conservatory of Dance, where he graduated cum laude, focusing on ballet, modern, and improvisation. His teaching experience spans company classes, professional workshops, and international festivals, emphasizing themes of identity and societal resistance.

TBC

This contemporary ballet class invites you to find your way of moving through a ballet technique.

Dances will be guided through a series of breathing techniques to start the class with a state of relaxation, slowly waking up the body by articulating the feet.

Rediscover your body's ability, freedom and technique, softening your approach to ballet and deleting expectations.

About:

Marie-Astrid Mence was a former student of the Higher National Conservatory of Music and Dance in Paris and a scholarship student at Alvin Ailey School. Marie-Astrid joined Ballet Black in 2014 up to 2020 where she performed numerous pieces from Mark Bruce, Will Tuckett, Martin Lawrence, Mthuthuzeli November, Sophie Laplane, Christopher Marney, Michael Corder, Cathy Marson, Arthur Pita, Christopher Hampson, Annabelle Lopez-Ochoa.

She joined Phoenix Dance Company in 2015 for a year where she worked with Sharon Watson, Itsik Galili, Kate Flatt and Darshan Singh Buhller. In 2016 she was promoted dancer of "the month" of February by the Magazine Dancing Times UK.

In 2018 Marie-Astrid featured in Disney's series Find Me in Paris Season 2 and 3 (2019) and OCS production series L'Opera where she was a body double for the 2nd female role in 2020. At the end of that year 2020, Marie-Astrid performed, wrote and shared a story in the Nowness short film The Truth of Being A Black Ballerinaby Rebecca Murray.

In 2021 Marie-Astrid was featured in Moeasy, Jords, Masego, Cascade music videos and Alexandra Luxem's short film. In 2022, she featured in Ulu’s series Spellbound where she was a body double for the 1st female role and also featured in ‘Queen Charlotte’ in the ball scene.

In the same year, she performed a 15-minute solo in Oklahoma! as the lead dancer at the Young Vic before making her West End debut in 2023 at the Wyndhams Theatre. Recently, she performed as a TEDX speaker in Paris where she talked about the notion of success and the courage to find our voice in a homogeneous environment.