Luail: New all-island dance company
Today, Ireland’s inaugural all island national and all island dance company was launched. The new Arts Council of Ireland funded organisation, called Luail, revealed the first phase of its development; auditions for a new ensemble of dancers, a series of eight artist commissions and the establishment of a collective of choreographers in residence.
A pioneering initiative of the Arts Council of Ireland, the new flagship company will create, develop, strengthen and promote dance of ambition and imagination, and will connect with audiences across the island of Ireland. Luail will develop under the artistic leadership of Liz Roche, with strategic partners Maiden Voyage Dance from Belfast and the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick.
The name Luail means movement, motion, energy, impulse and is grounded in the belief that dance is the vital pulse of human creativity, connecting people and ideas, in understanding and re-imagining the complexity of our shared island.
Auditions for the first all-island contemporary dance ensemble that will form Luail, will take place in July in Dublin and in August in Brussels. The first of a series of major new commissions, involving a dance artist from each of the four provinces of Ireland creating a new site-specific dance work in their home landscape and community, were announced.
Maiden Voyage’s foundational partnership with Luail opens opportunities for co-commissions, developing touring networks, artist connections, training and development across the island. The first of these co-commissions are with Georgia Tegou and Sarah Golding as part of our Off Spring work for young audiences and their adults.
Today’s event in Dublin was the first in a series of ‘meet the company’ information gatherings with artists, presenters, partners and the wider arts community as part of the first phase of the company’s development, with further national and international events planned. Luail’s full programme of activities, residencies, productions and touring, along with details of the inaugural national dance company ensemble, will be announced in January 2025.
Full details of the new company including auditions, commissions, residences and opportunities to get involved are available at www.luail.ie.
Context
In 2022, the Arts Council of Ireland published Advancing Dance 2022-2025, a policy which set out a vision for the future of the dance sector in Ireland. A key action of this policy was the creation of an all-island dance company that would lead to expanded opportunities for audiences and artists across Ireland to engage with dance, as well as extending the reach of Irish dance internationally. Following a competitive tender process, the new company will now be led by the Liz Roche Company with strategic partners Maiden Voyage Dance and the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick. The Arts Council is providing an initial €2M in funding for the establishment of Luail.