The company started its life as an independent group of dancers brought together by John McQueen (a Grenadian dancer in London) to perform at the National Dance Festival of Grenada in 2000.  Since that time the company has gone from strength to strength becoming a registered charity and company limited by Guarantee in 2003 and engaging with regular UK tours and workshop programmes.  In 2011 John McQueen set up a sister company Connectingvibes* USA in Baltimore with the two companies joining forces to perform at the Grenada National dance festival in 2013.

​

Current Position

​

Connectingvibes* is currently the touring company of Year 3 students on the BA(Hons) Diverse Dance Style delivered by IRIE! dance theatre. The students create a programme with professional artist and lecturers. Each year the company constructs a creative performance project alongside an education programme, where members contribute to the design and delivery of workshops.

​

The company has at its core the exploration of innovative work, utilising African, Caribbean, Contemporary and Physical Theatre techniques with a focus on embedding African and Caribbean dance forms so that they become part of the dance landscape, as common as Contemporary/Ballet and open to a diverse group of young people. Connectingvibes* utilises technology through film and innovative sound scores collaborating with guest choreographers /artists.

 

The company works to develop choreography from the company members so that they have a creative input and gain ownership of their journey as creative artists. Members receive constructive feedback and are introduced to contacts from the industry.

​

Since its inception Connectingvibes* has worked with a large number of performing artists who have since gone onto forge diverse career pathways in the industry from performers, to company entrepreneurs, designers, composers, educators and those working in technical theatre. Transferrable skills such as teamwork, creativity, independence, and discipline have provided them with a solid foundation.