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In March 2009 the UK’s leading dance house Sadler’s Wells goes truly global, launching an international online dance contest. Marking the start of a four-year worldwide competition that offers an annual winner a cash prize and the chance to perform at the UK’s leading dance house, Sadler’s Wells is calling all dancers and choreographers aged over 18 to take part.

The web-based competition which uses YouTube to host the entries, goes live on Monday 2 March via www.globaldancecontest.com. Seeking the next generation of dance talent, the winner will perform in front of a potential audience of 1800 people on the main stage at Sadler’s Wells Sampled, the theatre’s acclaimed dance showcase weekend featuring international stars, taking place annually in January. The contest builds up to a final showcase of each year’s winner in 2012.  

The panel of judges made up of leading figures from across the arts, is chaired by Sadler’s Wells Artistic Director and CEO, Alistair Spalding, and includes Arlene Phillips, a judge on BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing, The Royal Ballet’s Zenaida Yanowsky, and British artist and Turner Prize winner Martin Creed.                                                       

Sadler’s Wells Artistic Director Alistair Spalding says “Judging by the popularity of the dance clips and comments on YouTube there is huge talent and a massive appetite for every conceivable form of dance out there in the global community. Not everyone is lucky enough to receive formal dance training or to perform on stage and I’m incredibly excited that Sadler’s Wells can offer the potential stars of the future a chance to demonstrate their creative skills. The lucky winners will have a truly remarkable opportunity to perform alongside some of the greatest names in dance today and perhaps begin a career not otherwise imagined.”

Comprising two stages, the Sadler’s Wells Global Dance Contest invites anyone in the world over the age of 18 to enter. For the first stage entrants must create and capture on video their own original piece of dance from 30 seconds to three minutes in length, to upload onto YouTube. First stage entries, which can be any kind of dance style, must be in by Friday 17 July 2009. The videos will then be judged by the panel who will shortlist 10 entries. In the second stage of the contest, the 10 shortlisted entrants will create a longer piece of 5 minutes or more to submit for public vote. The public vote opens on Monday 1 September and the winner will be declared on Wednesday 18 November 2009.

The winner will receive £2000 and be brought to London from wherever they live, to perform alongside leading artists from the international dance scene at Sadler’s Wells Sampled, the theatre’s critically acclaimed, annual dance taster weekend. They will receive support and guidance from the theatre to help them ensure their work looks great on stage. At the end of four years in 2012, the collective winners will get to perform their work in London, during the Olympic year.

Selling out for its third consecutive year, the 2009 line-up at Sampled featured some of the world’s greatest choreography and companies including an excerpt from Matthew Bourne’s famous Swan Lake and dancers from the prestigious American Ballet Theatre.

Presenting excerpts of all forms of dance over one weekend, Sampled has garnered such praise as “a brilliant introduction to all that dance can be…completing the programme was Dana Fouras, performing Russell Maliphant’s Two. It was a feat of divine concentration which raised cheers almost as loud as those for the death-defying circus skills.” The Guardian January 2009 and “Packed to the rafters…offering a selection of acts from their dance line up for 2009, Sampled drew in a full house of people, both frequent to the theatre and those wanting to know what the fuss is all about, and rest assured, they got it.” Too Much Flavour January 2009.

Sadler’s Wells embraces multi-media technology and makes extensive use of video content to enhance the delivery of its programme to the widest possible audience. In 2007 it launched its own channel on YouTube. Its most popular clip on YouTube has received 47,000 views to date. The Sadler’s Wells website; www.sadlerswells.com is a leader in its field, accounting for 65% of the theatre’s ticket sales and hosting over 200 video clips, the most popular of which has received over 60,000 views. 

The Sadler’s Wells Global Dance Contest is now live! Visit: www.globaldancecontest.com