Part of my dramaturgy practice has always been about creating better opportunities for everyone to think and talk together about watching dance. The more we do, the richer our experience of watching and/or making new dance will be!

For Dancin’ Oxford 2022 I will be leading two post-show dialogue sessions for a small group of audience members together with the artistic director. The sessions are free to ticket holders for the show and will be a chance to reflect together on our experience of watching the show, and to discuss questions in dialogue with the artistic director and each other.

Expect prompts for reflection, thought-provoking discussion, and an insight into the dance-making process. It’s not your normal Q&A – it’ll be much more discursive and reflective, putting the experience nad knowledge of the artist and the audience on an equal page.

SESSION 1: Friday 11th March 2022, 8.45-9.30pm, North Wall Arts Centre, Oxford

Following Body Politic’s new show THEM, together with Emma-Jane Grieg

SESSION 2: Monday 14th March 2022, 8.45-8.30pm, Oxford Playhouse, Oxford

Following Richard Chappell Dance’s Infinite Way Home, together with Richard Chappell

Use the links above to book for the show and the sessions (they are separate booking links – for session 2 you just email info@dancinoxford.co.uk)

I’ve been developing a new strand of my Dance Audience Club work with The Mill arts centre in Banbury, as part of their Surf the Wave follow-on funding working with choreographer Seeta Patel and her Bharata Natyam reimagining of The Rite of Spring.

I will lead two workshops called ‘Talk about Dance’ at The Mill, in the weeks leading up to the performance of The Rite of Spring. These will be open to anyone with any level of knowledge (including none!) and will give the opportunity to explore the world of the piece and to discover some questions we might ask ourselves when watching…

The two sessions will cover different aspects of the work so can be attended individually or as a pair.

• Session 1 – Sunday 17 May 2020, 10.30am-1.30pm
• Session 2 – Friday 22 May 2020, 10.30am-1.30pm

BOOK HERE

Seeta Patel’s The Rite of Spring will be shown at The Mill on 1 June: BOOK HERE

I’m very excited to be piloting a new model of the Dance Audience Club for Dancin’ Oxford this Spring! This will be a bit like a book club but instead of talking about books, we’ll talk about live dance! The costs includes heavily discounted tickets for three shows, as well as facilitated discussions.

Dance Audience Club

February 29, 2020 to March 6, 2020

£30, includes a ticket to the 3 shows & an informal post show chat

BOOK HERE

Moving with the Times 29 February (Pegasus, Oxford), Gecko 3 March (Oxford Playhouse), Richard Chappell Dance 6 March (Pegasus, Oxford)

Are you dance curious? Do you enjoy talking about live performance?  Then join our new Dance Audience  Club – a bit like a Book Club but for live dance!

As a small, friendly group you will meet for an introductory chat to think about how to describe our dance experiences.  You will watch the three Festival dance performances above together (see brochure details for all shows) , and enjoy an informal post-show discussion plus a post-festival social.

This is a great opportunity for people who

* like watching dance but don’t have anyone to go with

*  would like to build confidence in watching and talking about dance,

* are unsure about whether they like dance but are interested in finding out

Led by Miranda Laurence, independent dance dramaturg, this is a pilot scheme for Dancin’ Oxford.

I’m delighted to be presenting a ‘Dance Audience Club’ session as part of the Oxford Dance Forum ‘Evolution’ event, celebrating a three year professional development programme through which I have received funding to pilot Dance Audience Club. I’m thrilled to present this session amidst a day full of an eclectic range of dance performances from Oxford artists, many of whom I have worked with as a dramaturg or in other ways.

A free event celebrating the work of local dance artists and recipients of the Arts Council England-funded Oxford Dance Forum Evolution awards. Offering a vibrant and eclectic mix of dance performances, dance films and documentaries, installations and discussions throughout the afternoon and evening, this one-time-only event is open to all!

Book tickets for each event you’d like to attend – all free, donations welcome.

https://oldfirestation.org.uk/whats-on/oxford-dance-forum-evolution-celebration/

Oxford Dance Forum presents ‘Dance Scratch’ at the Old Fire Station: an opportunity for three dance artists to show work in progress and receive responses from the audience in discussion.

I will be facilitating the audience responses. It’s a great opportunity for audiences to see some very different pieces of work at an early stage and to have the chance to feed back their ideas and responses in answer to some specific questions prepared by the artists, with my help.

The artists also receive a follow-up meeting with me to discuss how they will continue with the development of the work, and how the audience responses might inform that development.

Book tickets here: https://oldfirestation.org.uk/whats-on/dance-scratch-sept-19/

I will be leading another Dance Audience Club at the North Wall Theatre in Oxford, before the performance of Company Chordelia’s The Chosen

• Saturday 14 September, 6.30–7.30pm
• Dance Studio, North Wall Theatre
• Free tickets and discounted ticket to the performance

If you are curious about dance, but sometimes feel a bit stumped about how to process it or talk about it, then Dance Audience Club is for you!

A friendly, informal opportunity to give language to an art experience that can sometimes feel a bit difficult to pin down.

This pre-show discussion is an independent project led by Miranda Laurence, supported by Oxford Dance Forum. It’s free to take part, with discounted tickets to The Chosen. To book your place, email Amy Walters on waltersa@thenorthwall.com

The first Dance Audience Club session will take place at Oxford Playhouse, before the performance of Clod Ensemble’s On the High Road,

• Tuesday 21 May, 6-7pm
• Lucy Room, Oxford Playhouse
• FREE to ticket holders

You are invited to join the first Dance Audience Club, led by independent dance dramaturg Miranda Laurence. We will meet before the performance of Clod Ensemble’s ‘On the High Road’ to informally chat through the ways in which we might watch dance or other forms of non-narrative work. What might we look out for? What sort of things might we notice? What language could we use to sort through our reactions to the work?
If you are curious about watching dance, but sometimes feel a bit stumped about how to process it or talk about it, this is for you. It’s an informal, unthreatening invitation to give language to an art experience that can sometimes feel difficult to pin down.
This pre-show discussion is an independent project, supported by Oxford Playhouse, Clod Ensemble and Oxford Dance Forum.

https://www.oxfordplayhouse.com/whats-on/all-shows/on-the-high-road/11927

Moving Dramaturgy: exploring dance dramaturgy with bodies and minds

A workshop led by Miranda Laurence (dance dramaturg) and Ruth Pethybridge (dramaturg, lecturer and independent dance practitioner)

Saturday 18 May, 11-4pm, Oxford

In this workshop, we will be exploring the practice of dance dramaturgy through dance improvisation, movement-based reflection, discussion, case studies, and independent thought.

As dance dramaturgs, we often find ourselves referring to our practices in spatial terms, in relation to our position and perspective for the choreographer and of the work. Combining our questions about the nature of dance dramaturgy, and an interest in exploring dramaturgy through movement, we will use spatial metaphors and discussions of positionality to guide a choreographic exploration of the relationship between dramaturg, dance maker, and dance work. Together, we will explore with our bodies and minds how choreographers and dramaturgs can work together in a relational practice that acknowledges different positions and perspectives. 

This workshop is for dance makers with an interest in initiating, or developing, a relationship with a dramaturg, and for dramaturgs interested in exploring your personal practice as relational to the maker and the work. It is fine not to have any previous knowledge or experience of dramaturgy, as we will be exploring its definitions through the workshop. Similarly, we welcome theatre dramaturgs and theatre makers without experience of working in dance.

Date: Saturday 18 May 2019 11.00am – 4.00pm
Venue: Dance Studio, Old Fire Station, George St, Oxford OX1 2AQ
Tickets: £15 (£10 for Oxford Dance Forum Members)
Book: email cthompson@oxford.gov.uk

This workshop is part of Oxford Dance Forum’s Evolution Professional Development Programme supported by Arts Council England & Oxford City Council