Who We Are

Dance Research Studio is an independent research centre for innovative dance and performance founded by the artist Jacky Lansley in 2002. Situated in Shoreditch in central London, the studio provides an accessible and nurturing laboratory for combined arts research and development.


“I think the venue is a complete gift – a haven in central London that feels intimate without being restrictive. It has the atmosphere that I always hope to find: welcoming, inviting…”

SDIPT Student

A vibrant community of practitioners has gathered around the studio and made it their home – as part of the Associate Artist Scheme, Residency and Mentoring Programmes, international exchange projects, training workshops and community classes.

The studio’s renowned professional development programme – The Speaking Dancer – is supported and delivered by an outstanding international faculty of practitioner/teachers, some of whom are associates of DRS. Overall the programme provides an invaluable stepping stone into a professional context for graduates and further training and research opportunities for more established practitioners.

DRS emerged from and is part of the new and independent dance sector within the UK. Artistic Director Jacky Lansley was a founder of the seminal independent studios X6 Dance Space and Chisenhale Dance Space and DRS builds on and continues this legacy of innovation and research. In 2018, Lansley was awarded One Dance UK’s Jane Attenborough Award for services to dance. She now balances her time between her own creative practice and supporting intergenerational artists and companies through mentoring, teaching and artistically directing DRS which is forging an identity as one of the leading independent contexts for dance research; she says:

“The word ‘independent’ suggests spaces, companies and organisations that promote and support a diversity of practices and people who are inherently interdisciplinary and flexible enough to adapt to the needs of different audiences and communities. It also means contexts that allow artists to develop through relevant and rigorous training and provide access to useful skills, information and human support. It can also mean being independent from conventional trends that neutralise artistic practice and innovation”

Jacky Lansley
Artistic Director
jacky@danceresearchstudio.com

Advisory Committee

‘Funmi Adewole
Performer, writer and dance researcher

Ramsay Burt
Professor of Dance History at De Montfort University

Devon Caranicas
Gallery Director and Curator, New York

Sally Dean
Dance,Theatre and Somatic Practitioner

Contact Us

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