Dance Consortium, the organisation of 18 large-scale theatres with a mission to bring the best international contemporary dance to audiences throughout the UK and Ireland, has appointed Joe Bates as its new Executive Director. Bates will take up the role in early May 2022.
Bates is currently Director of Touring at Arts Council England where he has undertaken various roles since 2014, including a secondment as Director of Dance. At ACE he has overseen and developed a range of programmes and policy initiatives and led on international projects in collaboration with the British Council. Before that, he jointly ran his own production and management company, Morton Bates Arts Services, and worked with a range of artists and companies including Candoco Dance Company and Richard Alston Dance Company. From 2010 to 2014, Bates was Chair of the Independent Dance Management Network.
Joe Bates says: "I am delighted to be joining Dance Consortium as its new Executive Director. For over 20 years, the Consortium has been bringing world-class contemporary dance to audiences across the country, as well as supporting dancers to develop their skills through its high-quality education and participatory programmes. For me, this role perfectly brings together my passions for dance, touring and international collaboration. I am really looking forward to further developing the consortium's impact on the touring ecology through its expanded engagement and leadership programmes. I am also excited to work with the venue partners to help enable more communities to discover, learn and fall in love with dance."
Stephen Crocker and Marianne Locatori, Co-Chairs of Dance Consortium, say: "We are delighted to be welcoming Joe as the new Executive Director of Dance Consortium. Since its formation, Dance Consortium has become a vital part of the international dance ecology, a powerful advocate for diversity through internationalism and an exemplar for collaborative working. Such an outstanding track record requires outstanding leadership and Joe will bring his excellent knowledge and multi-faceted experience of both UK and international dance and touring to the role.
As Dance Consortium prepares to welcome Joe, on behalf all the members we also record our sincere thanks to Ros Robins for her similarly outstanding work and leadership since 2016. We owe her a huge debt of gratitude and wish her well."
Bates takes over from Ros Robins who has been at the helm since 2016. She says: "Congratulations to Joe on his appointment - he is the perfect person to be the next Executive Director of Dance Consortium, combining a passion for dance with great skills and knowledge. I have immensely enjoyed my six years with the Consortium, working with the staff and Chief Executives of some of the UK's most successful theatres, a wonderful team of freelancers and of course the best international contemporary dance companies. What better way to end my tenure with two superb companies on the road - Acosta Danza and NDT 2 - I look forward to continuing to support the Consortium's work from a seat in the auditorium!
Dance Consortium is currently touring Acosta Danza and NDT 2 to eleven venues throughout the UK and Ireland.
https://danceconsortium.com/
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