‘I’d like to echo my deep appreciation to Dr Sara Houston for her inspirational leadership as outgoing Chair…’
I am deeply humbled… can you imagine - 2020 marks my 6th decade as a dance artist, choreographer, artistic director, author, professor, educator, coach, campaigner, champion.
One of five Founding Arts Council of Great Britain Dance Animateurs (Dance Artists-in Residence) with Marie McCluskey MBE, Veronica Lewis CBE, Molly Kenny and Linda Jasper MBE; I became Founding Director, DanceEast; editor, Animated Magazine (1996-2002), and appointed an Honorary Life Member of People Dancing in 2016.
I have walked through many lives, danced through many lives … inhabited Classical ballet (Karsavina, Cecchetti, de Valois, Rambert, Fonteyn, Bicknall, Bull); American contemporary dance (Humphrey, Limón, Ailey, Cunningham, Graham); the pioneering X6 Dance Collective (Claid, Dupres, Early, Lansley, Prestige); British contemporary dance (including Cohan, Davies, Alston, Dilkes, Van Laast, Bergese, Clarke, Smith, McGregor); Black British and dances of the African Diaspora (including Joseph, IRIE!, Kokuma, Adzido, H Patten), South Asian dance in many forms (including Jeyasingh, Sarker, Dutta, Banerjee); European dance (Laban, Jooss, Leeder); dance as education instigators, agitators, provocateurs (Madden, Brinson, Primrose, Meier, Semple, Carlisle); and pioneers for inclusive dance (Dandeker, Benjamin, Greenland, Lee). All enthralling heritages - and most crucially informing the emergence of community dance and People Dancing (and its previous incarnations!). The genius of pioneering dancers who dared to dream…
My journey travels from counter to mainstream culture. I challenge polarised viewpoints, prolifically, passionately, philosophically, professionally; through invidious poverty, as pioneer, provocateur. So many lives… some of them my own. Public and private as one; scattered across 87 countries. Nothing that I share stands alone or is complete in the present: it has roots in the past and feelers into the future.
Today – here/now – with YOU – represents a culture of possibility, not limited or determined by constraints or synthetic constructs of a specific narrative … to reimagine the possibilities, “cultivate” courage, compassion, and connection … embrace … lean into the discomfort… to reposition, walk, dance…
A continuous flow of change. Wonderful exhilarating change.
From counter to mainstream culture - the full names of a few of the pioneering artists mentioned - a small part of my life in and through dance and crucially informing the emergence of community dance and People Dancing:
Adzido Dance (Pan-African Dance Ensemble), Alvin Ailey , Sir Richard Alston CBE, Peter Badejo OBE, Sujata Bannerjee MBE, Adam Benjamin, Micha Bergese, Mari Bicknell MBE, Peter Brinson, Deborah Bull, Baroness Bull CBE; Anna Carlisle MBE, Enrico Cecchetti, Emilyn Claid, Gill Clarke MBE, Sir Robert Paul Cohan CBE, Mercier Philip "Merce" Cunningham, Siobhan Davies CBE, Celeste Dandeker OBE, Irene Dilkes, Madee Dupres, Sanjeevini Dutta, Fergus Early, MBE, Dame Margaret Evelyn de Arias DBE: stage name Margot Fonteyn; Martha Graham; Penny Greenland MBE; H. Patten; Doris Batcheller Humphrey; Beverley Glean MBE (IRIE!); Linda Jasper MBE, Shobana Jeyasingh CBE, Kurt Jooss, Elroy Joseph, Tamara Platonovna Karsavina, Molly Kenny, Kokuma Dance Company, Rudolf Laban, Jacky Lansley, Rosemary Lee, Sigurd Leeder, Veronica Lewis CBE, José Arcadio Limón, Dorothy Madden, Russell Maliphant, Marie McCluskey MBE, Wayne McGregor CBE, Walli Meier, Mary Prestige, Lorn Primrose, Dame Marie Rambert DBE, Bisakha Sarker MBE, Maggie Semple, OBE, FCGI, Janet Smith MBE, Anthony Van Laast CBE, Dame Ninette de Valois OM CH DBE.
Main photo Scilla Dyke MBE. Photographer: Gary John Norman.
Made in Suffolk. Directed by Mel Horwood
Between 1982-1993 Scilla Dyke founded and directed what would become a sea change in the UK Arts world. Made in Suffolk is the story of Suffolk Dance / DanceEast and one woman's lasting impact on dance.
Researcher: Pamela Harling-Challis BUS, MFA, MPhil. Graphics and Editing support: Sam Horwood. Contributors: Dr Scilla Dyke MBE, Dr Maggie Semple OBE, FCGI, Michael Platt, Teacher, One Sixth Form College, Advisory Teacher for Dance, Suffolk, 1993-2010, Charlotte Darbyshire, Co-Artistic Director, Candoco Dance Company, Gary Avis MBE, Principal Character Artist & Ballet Master, The Royal Ballet. Funding contributions from DanceEast, People Dancing, The Laban Guild.
The UK Premiere of Made in Suffolk took place on Saturday 7th September 2019 at Jerwood DanceHouse as part of DanceEast's 10th anniversary celebrations of the Jerwood DanceHouse, Ipswich.
The Film draws on archive photographs and video as well as research through conversation with Scilla Dyke herself. There are personal contributions by internationally renowned dance artists who were involved with Suffolk Dance/DanceEast during those early days.
Made in Suffolk is about how one woman created a rich culture of dance that fuelled the momentum to create the iconic Jerwood DanceHouse in Ipswich, home of DanceEast. That woman is Dr Scilla Dyke MBE, Founder Director Suffolk Dance/DanceEast, 1982-1993, Advisory Teacher for Dance, Suffolk, 1987-1993. Member & Chair of the Board Suffolk Dance/DanceEast 1993-2000. Editor, Animated Magazine 1996 up until and including Spring 2002 issue and Guest Columnist Winter 2016/17 issue.
Made in Suffolk is a tribute to the work of Scilla Dyke, one of the early dance animateurs and pioneers of community dance appointed during the late 1970’s and early 1980’s. This story belongs to us all as it formed the foundation for the dance culture that built our UK community dance ecology today. Yet so much of the history will be lost and so many people will go unacknowledged as it was a pre-digital age and archive material is disappearing. This film is also a record of that time.
The aim of the film is not to present Scilla’s work in its entirety but to be an overview of her vision, hard work and impact. The film is also a celebration of Community Dance and how it developed in East Anglia and beyond. It tells how one dance animateur, Scilla Dyke, appointed in 1982 to a post in Ipswich with the brief of ‘Make Dance Happen’ did just that.
Made in Suffolk demonstrates how Scilla’s passion, drive and skills in growing dance in the community raised the expectations and aspirations of the people of Suffolk. Through setting up summer schools, youth dance companies and adult classes she reached out across the region and beyond. Her dance residencies always nurtured professional dancers, dance artists and choreographers. She made no barriers between people in the community and the dance artists whom she supported in their choreographic careers. Over the years a vast number of dance artists and companies were resident throughout Suffolk impacting on individuals and communities alike.