Founding Joss Arnott Dance in 2010, Joss is an internationally award-winning choreographer who has been continuously supported and commissioned by leading UK dance agencies, venues and funding organisations. Joss is in demand as a choreographer and has been commissioned to create work for professional dance companies including Rambert, leading dance conservatoires and talent development schemes.
His artistic vision is fuelled by creating a portfolio of work for a diverse range of audiences which are at the heart of everything he produces, including indoor, outdoor and family-orientated productions. He has a trademark, athletic choreographic language that is grown from classical and commercial techniques, shaped by contemporary aesthetic and inspired by music.
Through his work with Joss Arnott Dance as Artistic Director since 2010, he has;
- Created over 14 live productions for the company.
- Toured 9 programmes of work nationally and internationally.
- Curated world-class collaborations working with over 150 dance artists, designers, composers and dramaturgs.
- Developed relationships with international agents, artists and theatres within the USA, Canada and Europe.
- Created bespoke education and talent development programmes.
- Developed partnerships with leading dance organisations and funding bodies including Arts Council England, PRS for Music Foundation, Royal Philharmonic Society, Without Walls and Rolls-Royce.
- Created relationships with internationally recognised, dance powerhouses Factory International, Sadler’s Wells, The Lowry and Northern Ballet.
- Been supported by dance houses and festivals including DanceEast, Blackpool Grand Theatre, Pavilion Dance South West, Bradford Arts Centre, Barnsley Civic, Z-arts, CAST, Dance City, Latitude Festival, SIRF, Stockton International Riverside Festival, Greenwich+Docklands International Festival (with funding from the Leche Trust) and Salisbury International Arts Festival.
- Become an Associate Artist at Deda, Swindon Dance and Lincoln Arts Centre.
- Developed and co-deliver a MA Dance programme in partnership with the University of Salford (Emergence) since 2018.
Joss strives for innovation of the highest quality and curating world class collaborations for JAD which became evident in 2015 with the company’s 5th anniversary tour that featured live music from the world’s premier solo percussionist, Dame Evelyn Glennie.
With a commitment and passion for talent development, Joss has been a Focus Group Artist for Sadler’s Wells National Youth Dance Company, BBC Young Dancer consultant and has worked with and produced multiple works for national Centre for Advanced Training Schemes. He is also a featured artist for AQA’s 2020/21 Performing Arts Qualification.
He received his first international dance award in 2016 for his solo work ‘V’ for Outstanding Choreographic Musical Interpretation and Dance Technicality from WARSAWZawirowania Dance International.
Joss Arnott and the University of Salford with the launch of a new MA Dance Performance and Professional Practices programme that established EMERGENCE, now an award-winning, leading postgraduate performance company, that tours newly commissioned performance work by internationally acclaimed choreographers annually.
In 2019, Joss Arnott Dance were selected to be part of Surf the Wave, UK Dance Showcase and joined the Without Walls Programme with ‘PULSE!’, a dance and live music duet created for the streets set around a 3.5m high percussion wheel designed by Linbury Prize winning artist Eleanor Bull and engineered by Rolls-Royce.
2020 marked Joss Arnott Dance’s 10th anniversary and the company celebrated this key milestone developing the ‘DANCE:CONNECTS – PULSE! 2.0′ initiative. With support from Arts Council England’s Emergency Response Funding and commission funds from Pavilion Dance South West, JAD were able to financially support more than 25 independent dance artists and work with hundreds of people of all ages from across the world including Asia, Europe, Australia and the USA through online live workshops, tutorials and accessible pre-recorded Learn at Home videos.
The legacy in this work is through the film documentation and the existing and new global relationships the company developed throughout the duration of the activity. This includes the British Council with both films being selected to be featured as part of the 2020 UK-China Contemporary Culture Festival.
Productions from 2021 onward include
‘TIN MAN’ (2022-23) National touring across the UK
‘RUSH’ (2023) An outdoor work performed as festivals including Latitude, Greenwich + Docklands International Festival and Stockton International Riverside Festival.
‘Meet the Hatter’ (2025) 15th anniversary production, premiered at Northern Ballet and UK tour.
‘Tin Man and the Scarecrow’ (2026). A new dance production for community settings including schools and libraries.
Productions for Emergence include – National tours of ‘SURGE’ (2023 & 24) and ‘EUPHORIA’ (2025 & 26)
2026 & 27 – ‘Meet the Hatter’ will tour extensively around the UK and embark on an international tour to the USA and Canada.
"The perfect tonic for British
Contemporary dance"
londonist, 2010
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