Category: Team

Rosemary has worked as an accountant since leaving university but has specialised in the medical profession for the last 20 years, opening her own company in 2009. She now has clients throughout the UK and is the only person who gives directions by GP surgeries rather than pubs.

In her spare time she enjoys walking and cycling, but her favourite pastime is looking after her two granddaughters. That is the perfect excuse to be as silly as she wants.

Rosemary was first introduced to Frontline by her stepdaughter, who has Down’s Syndrome, and who attends Thursday’s Breakthrou’ classes as a highlight of her week and especially working on the performances. It has been a delight to become more involved and she looks forward to her weeks when she watches the classes and marvels at the way the groups work together bringing them out with so much confidence.

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).

Paul trained at Manchester Metropolitan School of Theatre and works in Theatre, Radio and TV.

His TV credits include; Dr Dean West: Holby City, Paul Ball: I’m With Stupid, Michael Scant: A Thing Called Love, Ollie Beresford: Casualty, David Hobbs: Playing the Field, all for BBC. Prankster: Off Their Rockers – Blue Badge Special, ITV

Paul was the first disabled person in the country to gain a qualification in stage combat from the British Academy of Dramatic Combat, and in 2007 he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Staffordshire University for services to acting and the promotion of disabled actors.

Paul is also a trained and registered Hypnotist, specialising in confidence, stage fright and phobias, and also performs comedy stage hypnosis shows. Find out more at www.henshallhypnosis.com

Paul joined FRONTLINEdance as a trainee back in 2001 for our IGNITE! Project. He then joined the main cast for ‘A Table for One Please’ and danced for us on our INCLUSION education tours.

Kevin is a PGCE trained Secondary Dance teacher, workshop leader, performer and choreographer.  Since performing with FRONTLINEdance in 2005/2006, Kevin has performed with SignDance Collective, GiveBack Dancers, Scatter Dance Company and was a founding member of Deaf Men Dancing, who have toured to Europe and nationally.  Kevin has worked in state education as a Head of Expressive Arts Faculty and continues to teach in schools.  Kevin just completed work with Ramps on the Moon (as Assistant Choreographer for the inclusive touring production of Tommy), National Deaf Childrens Society as a workshop leader and as a community artist working with primary schools with separate dance organisations – DanceEast and Juka Dance.  Kevin is a Keynote Educational Inset provider, designing and delivering courses for GCSE Dance teachers across the country.

Kevin has completed the New Adventures Community mentor scheme; Overture and the Teacher mentor scheme with One Dance UK.  He has was accepted onto the Creative Dance and Technology Lab in partnership with the London College of fashion.  Kevin is continuing to teach, choreograph and perform within the inclusive sector and in educational settings.

Kevin is rejoined the FRONTLINEdance team for the Discover Dance Residency in July 2017.

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.

Sadly, Dave passed away in October 2020. He was a dance legend, and FRONTLINEdance were incredibly lucky to have worked with him over the last twenty years. Dave supported the making of the first work Rachael and Mike made in 2000, co-lead workshops with Rachael, supported Rachael as she auditioned company dancers, and created and performed in our works; Ignite! and Happenchance 2014 & 2016. The team miss him very much.

We have decided to leave his biography up on our website in remembrance of the wonderful and very talented, celebrated and International performer he was.

Dave began dancing over twenty years ago after attending a dance workshop being held by CandoCo Dance Company. After a follow up residency he joined the company and toured with them for seven years. After leaving in 1999 he went on to work with companies such as DV8 (Cost Of Living), Royal Shakespeare Company (I’ll Be the Devil), Graeae Theatre Company (Blasted), SlungLow (They Only Come at Night- Resurrection) and is currently working with Stop Gap along with others.

He also appeared on screen and TV in films The Tango Lesson and Amazing Grace and in TV shows Rome and I’m Spazticus a hidden camera show performed by disabled performers.

He was a soloist as part of the Opening Ceremony for the 2012 Paralympics, something he is very proud of and was a guest on local BBC news and the Alan Titchmarsh show as a result. Also for 2012, Dave collaborated with a team of UK and South African artists, both non-disabled and disabled, on a world première production for IDFB 2012,’ The Impending Storm’, which was produced with the support of DanceXchange. The Impending Storm was awarded one of the thirteen commissions in the second round of awards for Unlimited.

Dave acted as a mentor for Rachael and Mike during the creation of their first duet ‘Essence’ in 2000, later joining the company as a performer for IGNITE! He returned to FRONTLINEdance to perform Happenchance 2014 (our hospital dance project).

Mary’s professional dance career has spanned 5 decades. Originally an Olympic gymnast in the 1960’s, her first dance work was with Ballet Rambert. (1969-1974). In the mid 70’s after a year in New York in the thrall of the post modern dance and theatre scene, Mary joined forces with Jacky Lansley, Emilyn Claid, Fergus Early and Maedee Dupres and co-founded X6 Dance Space and its successor Chisenhale Dance Space, in London. These organisations provided an important context for the research and development of new dance forms and new ways of presenting work. Mary’s interest in improvisation and modes of improvisational performance began at this time and she brought these new approaches and aesthetics of dance and performance to a growing independent dance scene.

Based in Liverpool since 1995 Mary was key in the development of a dance programme at the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA), until 2008. With the Liverpool Improvisation Collective (LIC) artists and others, she continues to develop strategies and contexts for performance and artist exchange within the region, nationally and internationally.

Mary danced for FRONTLINEdance’s hospital dance project ‘Forget Me Knot’ in 2015 and 2016 – inspired by the hospitals dementia care programme.

Working in Integrated dance for over 17 years, Welly has performed and taught both Nationally and Internationally, travelling all over the world. She has worked with Candoco dance company, Caroline Bowditch, Graeae Theatre Company, La fura Dels Baus, Underground7, Scarabeus, and others.

In 2012 she performed in Parallel Lines by Marc Brew and 12 by Clare Cunningham, which were specially commissioned for the Unlimited Festival in celebration of the Cultural Olympiad.

She has performed in Trisha Brown’s floor of the forest, Scarabeus’ Heartland, the closing ceremony of the Paralympic Games.These recent works have led her into more site specific work, which she enjoys every aspect of.

Welly is currently touring her own work with co-creator and performer, Kate Marsh and is an associate CandoCo artist. Welly danced for FRONTLINEdance’s ‘Happenchance’ Tour (our hospital dance project) 2014 and 2016.

Junction 15 are an Emmy award winning video production company with experienced and talented filmmakers who produce creative, fresh and broadcast quality films. Based in the Midlands

Greg Hall is a composer, sound designer, musician and performer.

Theatre credits include Beauty & The Beast (NIE), I Will Be Everything (NIE), Cupboard Of Surprises (The National Theatre), Peter Pan (The Northcott Theatre).

Elegy For A Lady (The Salisbury Playhouse), My Brother, My Sister and Me (Polka Theatre), Paper Aeroplane (Lots Of Odds/Half Moon Theatre), Whispering Willows (Wassail Theatre) and Luna (Theatre Iolo/Theatre Hullabaloo).

Film and TV credits include Shane Meadow’s ‘Le Donk & Scor-Zay-Zee’ (Warp Films), and numerous worldwide placements on TV as part of music production company Monotwin.

Greg is a member of Minima, one of Europe’s leading silent film accompaniment bands and has also worked as an ethnomusicologist for the British Library in South Africa and Palestine.

Greg has worked with FRONTLINEdance since 2008, training as a professional dancer and dance for special educational needs gaining a distinction in this area.