UK-based Candoco Dance Company has announced a unique partnership with affordable fashion etailer ASOS. The brand, which caters for lifestyle-fanatic 20-somethings, will back a residential dance series for young dancers this summer.
Open to ages 18-30, Candoco’s Training Intensive will run for two weeks and encourage entry into the dance profession via sessions with the company’s skilled bunch of professional dancers and choreographers (follow the conversation at #whatdancecanbe). Accessible for disabled and non-disabled dancers from diverse backgrounds, the ASOS partnership allows Candoco to deliver the course completely free of charge.
Charlotte Darbyshire, artistic co-director at Candoco, said, “There is so much physical talent and artistic potential out there among young disabled and non-disabled adults, and a huge demand for wider representation in the dance sector, and yet there is simply not enough access to training or routes into the profession. This exciting partnership with ASOS will enable Candoco to use our expertise in inclusive dance practice to provide an unparalleled learning opportunity for these young artists.”
Founded in 1991, Candoco is gradually edging into the mass market, having made an appearance on the top-rating reality TV show Strictly Come Dancing in Autumn 2018.
The partnership sits within ASOS’ wider corporate social responsibility activity to promote and protect its customers’ mental health, wellbeing and body confidence: ASOS has been the official formal- and ceremony-wear supplier to the British Paralympic Association since 2015 and has provided clothing for the Rio 2016 and PyeongChang 2018 Paralympic Games, with work underway for Tokyo 2020.
The company takes it youth market seriously: its CSR programmes have also seen the company donate stock to disability charity Scope, to help more than 600 disabled people back into work; partner with LGBTQ+ charities Stonewall and GLAAD to further acceptance globally; and work with Beat, the UK’s leading eating disorder charity that helps eating disorder sufferers and their families.
Louise McCabe, corporate responsibility director at ASOS, added, “We believe that every young person, no matter their background, should be given the chance to reach their full potential. We couldn’t be happier to be working with Candoco and supporting such an inclusive approach to creative expression.”
Auditions for the Candoco Training Intensive will be held in May, interested dancers should contact learning@candoco.co.uk for more information.
