Month: June 2017

Mike King co-founded FRONTLINEdance alongside Rachael. He started dancing in the Yorkshire Dales back in the early 80’s but chose a career as an Outdoor Pursuits instructor and cave explorer. A climbing accident meant a big change. Now a wheelchair user, Mike re-evaluated his values and priorities. After a year of doing this, Mike attended a summer school with Candoco in which he loved, and shortly afterwards secured a Grant from Arts Council England for work shadowing the company. He later joined Candoco’s education team as an assistant.

During the summer residency Mike also met Rachael and shortly afterwards FRONTLINEdance began. During this time, Mike also enrolled on a PGCE at Aberystwyth to start a teaching career.

He later worked as a performer with Blue Eyed Soul on Frankenstein, directed by Liam Steel (formally DV8), Ariel projects with the Flying Piglets in New Zealand, an inclusive performance project with Scottish Dance Theatre, directed a show for Half Moon Young People’s Theatre and created a duet with Michal Popper.

Graeae Theatre in conjunction with London Metropolitan University offered Mike a place on their Missing Piece Project – an acting course with a mini- tour at the end. This led to a TIE piece with Graeae around East-End of London Schools. When that tour finished he combined working as a drama teacher in a secondary school and work with FRONTLINEdance.

Mike is currently a full time Drama teacher in a mainstream State Secondary in Kent delivering GCSE and A Level. When not working, Mike can usually be found on, in, or around water; Canoeing /Fishing / Swimming / Sailing.

Mike believes that FRONTLINEdance gave him the foundation – confidence / knowledge/ professional work ethic /artistic integrity to allow him to re-invent myself (find his true calling as a teacher).

In 2001, Rachael set up FRONTLINEdance with Michael King and has since created, devised, fund-raised and delivered many projects and performance work, successfully gaining support from a range of funding bodies since. She has choreographed; collaborated with musicians/film makers/fine artists; performed nationally; taught; created education packs; devised and managed many projects and tours. Rachael continues to manage and lead FRONTLINEdance, both artistically and strategically.

Rachael was introduced to Contemporary dance at the age of 16 by dance lecturers Dee De Wet and Sylvia Farrier, and loved it! She then completed a degree in Dance whilst training at the Northern School of Contemporary Dance in Leeds (1998). Here she focused on training as a professional dancer and dance for special educational needs gaining a distinction in this area. Rachael also holds a post graduate certificate in ‘dance artist in education’ and has taken part in a Dance for Parkinson training course created by Dance Umbrella and lead by Marc Morris Dance (USA).

Rachael has worked as both a dancer and choreographer, specialising in integrated dance and dance and disability nationally as both a freelance dance artist and for FRONTLINEdance. She has worked for a number of national organisations and agencies, working with all ages and abilities from nursery aged children to professional dancers to older people, and a short stint as a part-time associate lecturer in dance at MMU Cheshire.

Rachael is driven by the people she works with, her son (learning disability, scoliosis and a heart condition) and managing three different health conditions. This has enriched the work she devises for FRONTLINEdance and has informed its current Artistic practice and direction. She is driven to change negative preconceptions of disability, provide opportunities, working in community and health settings, whilst being able to use her love of the art and creativity of contemporary dance to do so.