Welsh choreographer for intensive dance workshop

Welsh teacher/choreographer Douglas Comley will be in Malta to conduct classes during a four-day summer intensive dance workshop at the Contact Dance Company this month.

The company's artistic director, Francesca Abela Tranter, says the annual event is meant to serve as an opportune dance platform to encourage dancers to explore their craft further, nurture their minds and challenge themselves physically. The classes will be held at The Dance Workshop.

"The hybrid of dance is committed to providing artists to a process-orientated platform for artistic exchange and dialogue through dance.

"The workshops will be a creative exploration in developing dance ideas," Ms Abela Tranter says. Technique classes are followed by dance development using choreographic frameworks. This will culminate in a sharing of work towards the end of the exchange.

Mr Comley, a highly-respected expert in the sphere of contemporary dance, has performed internationally with several dance companies. His work within the educational field has led to choreographic assignments with companies from various parts of the world.

Contact Dance Company invited Mr Comley in 2001, when he developed TV OD, based on the idea of the influence that all commercial media has on people's minds. This work was performed successfully in several high-profile international theatres and festivals in Europe.

He is the director of the male dance group Dynion (men) and has been involved in the choreography and implementation of several large-scale opening ceremonies, including the 99 Rugby World Cup, the Millennium Youth Games, the Dubai City Festival, the Commonwealth Games and the World Gymanaestrade in Austria 2007. He was awarded a Creative Arts Wales Award and worked with pioneering choreographers in Barcelona and Copenhagen.

Mr Comley is lecturer on performing arts at Gorseinon College of Further Education.

contactdancecompany@gmail.com