Over the autumn, we were delighted to have Marni and Reuben on placement with us, as part of the BOOST Bursary scheme. Marni spent her time working with the Creative Team, on the YouthFest and class programme. Reuben has been working with the Marketing team and Audience Ambassadors on producing a short documentary film. Find out more about their experience below.
MEET MARNI
Hi, I’m Marni, a recent dance graduate from the University of Lincoln. I have grown up in Ipswich my whole life and have danced with DanceEast from a young age (doing hip-hop classes and being a student on the CAT scheme). Now I have graduated, I am back home building up various dance related work, which is a big reason why I wanted to work here at DanceEast. The opportunity of Boost: Creative Careers Bursary came up on the DanceEast website and sounded like the perfect way to gain more industry experience and work skills. I think my highlight so far has been working on this year’s YouthFest, it has allowed me to help plan and manage a dance festival and work with an amazing creative team. It has also been amazing being a Teaching Assistant for various youth classes, being able to learn more about facilitation and community practices. Moving forward from this placement, I would love to facilitate my own classes, produce more dance related events and choreograph more works. Thanks to DanceEast and Eastern Angles this has allowed me to move a step closer in the direction to achieving these goals. If you are also a recent graduate or are a creative artist just starting your career I would really recommend keeping an eye out on the DanceEast website for any future opportunities or just to make more connections in the industry!
MEET REUBEN
I’m Reuben, I’m 22. I’m Ipswich born and raised, and I am having an amazing time working here at DanceEast! About myself, I’m a recent film graduate from the University of Bristol, having achieved a first-class honours. I spent the summer looking for arts and creative work back in Suffolk. There was absolutely no way I could afford to live in Bristol without Student Finance England being the delightful financial cushion that it is. I had attended a multitude of Dance East productions ever since I was very young; notably, my first memory here was watching Be-dom when I was 7 for my mum’s birthday. And ever since then, my family and I have become DanceEast regulars. This personal connection to DanceEast made it an obvious place for me to apply for work for. And after having several great chats with Lucy and Amy here we are. Everyone here has been lovely and so welcoming and have made me feel at ease working here. I’ve really been impressed by the vast amount of film and theatre tech there is here and the vast array of uses they hold. It’s been very insightful, and I’ve learnt a lot about the amount of time and effort that is needed to perfect a show. To be asked to make a short documentary for the company is an honour and I am looking forward to interviewing the staff and the audiences here and getting to know the range of voices that attend shows here at DanceEast. For anyone unsure about attending DanceEast, give it a go, every show is vastly different to the last, so you’ll always see something new, unique, and deeply thought-provoking.
Find out more about work experience opportunities at DanceEast over on our careers page here.
