Jump Start & Spring Forward

Jump Start

New Adventures is committed to supporting our dancers in their career development and investing in the future of dance and theatre by supporting our performers as they transition into new stages of their professional lives. 

Through professional guidance, bursaries and wellbeing provision, Jump Start empowers  dancers to  take the  next steps towards pursuing careers  off stage,  harnessing  the skills and knowledge gained through their performing careers  and applying them in other roles  in  the arts sector.

WHAT THE PROGRAMME INCLUDES

• Small Steps: bursaries for dancers who need support to explore new career ideas through training and development in less familiar fields.  
• Big Leaps: bursaries and support for dancers who need bespoke support and are ready to make the leap into new careers but need coaching, guidance and other provisions to make the transition. 

We are currently supporting longstanding company dancer Dan Wright in piloting Strong Dance UK, a training programme specifically designed to support dancers pre-, during and post-performance. Dancer, Nicole Kabera has also received a Small Steps bursary to explore Personal Fitness Training.

"The Jump Start programme is quite simply more than I could have ever expected, from the moment I first mentioned my vision for an idea I've had the full support of the entire New Adventures team at my disposal. The mentorship, the guidance and the sheer level of support I've had through the programme has been nothing short of incredible." - Dan Wright

ALUMNI

Our previous Jump Start recipients have included Chloe Wilkinson, Tom Jackson Greaves and Edwin Ray.

"I was so grateful to be a part of the jump start program. It certainly helped me to push my creative, choreographic and directing skills. It was brilliant at the time, and I think it was very influential in my creative work that followed." - Edwin Ray

Spring Forward

Supporting company dancers through the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting restrictions on performing, touring and teaching dance, Spring Forward is an exciting new addition to our Jump Start programme.  

Through professional guidance and bursaries, Spring Forward supports company members to learn a new skill, access training, personal development or spend time in research and development for choreographic projects.

Spring Forward offers bursaries up to a maximum of £2000 and in our first round we had a total number of 12 successful applications, along with offering a series of coaching sessions to a further two company dancers. The support and training is being undertaken in a variety of different areas of the sector including: Performance/Motion Capture and Puppeteering, Pilates, Art Therapy, Stage Make up, Film studies, Photography, and Environmental Management, amongst others. 

In Feb 2021, Spring Forward recipient Cameron Flynn released UNSKILLED, a short film for which he received the Spring Forward bursary. You can watch UNSKILLED here.

We are extremely grateful for the generous support of an anonymous donor who is helping us to deliver this programme.

"This opportunity from New Adventures through their 'Spring Forward' scheme means a lot to me because it shows to me how much they care for both their dancers and the environment that they live in and are affected by. I was extremely proud to have worked as part of the first green certified UK tour with Swan Lake and my aim now is to continue the work that we started on that tour." - Andrew Ashton, Environmental Management