Fresh Friday with Jamiel Devernay-Laurence

Rambert School is excited to welcome our first Fresh Friday teacher of the new academic year. Our Fresh Friday workshops introduce our students to external teachers, dance artists and creators to expand their creative learning. This week we welcome Jamiel Laurence the Creative Director of Rubicon Dance Company. Cardiff based Rubicon Dance Company works with Rubicon Dance Organisation to help get graduate Welsh-trained dancers into paying dance jobs. Jamiel occupies a unique position within the wider arts economy, as an artist creating work through collaborative practice, while also producing the work of other artists through entrepreneurship, bringing together his experience as a Performer, Creative Director, Venue Director, Filmmaker, and Choreographer. ​

Selecting the founding company members in September 2021, Jamiel created the company’s first highly acclaimed full-length production, The Nutcracker premiering in December 2021. Since that time, Jamiel has created the Nutcracker Bach schools tour offer, delivered to over 780 primary and high school students across Wales, produced the company’s upcoming digital immersive audience experience, 16:1 choreographed by Constant Vigier, and is in production on the inaugural TRIPLE BILL set to tour  England and Wales.

As an award-winning Choreographer & Filmmaker, Jamiel has created works for several notable organizations including BBC ARTS, BBC Scotland, BBC Connected Studio, Google, OneDanceUK, 3Tone Records, The Peter Darrell Trust, Celtic Connections, Scottish Ballet, Ballet Ireland, Edinburgh Fringe, The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Dance School of Scotland and more.

Jamiel is also a teacher and coach, providing free company classes daily to freelances in Wales through Rubicon Dance Company, and teaching for New Adventures, The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Scottish Ballet Associates, #FundFreelanceDance, The Lanterns Studio Theatre in London, and for those professionals engaged across his various stage and film projects. Jamiel is passionate about developing both professional and student dancers towards achieving their potential and continues to evolve his own teaching practice to this end.

Since 2020, Jamiel has demonstrated the ability to facilitate new opportunities and generate dance employment opportunities, founding the ongoing #FundFreelanceDance initiative, and more recently creating the unique event concept, BALLET NIGHTS. ​Now seeking to work with like-minded thinkers on exciting projects putting dance into new spaces, Jamiel is focused on opportunities that assist with the recovery of the arts & culture sector post-pandemic and create conditions in which artists can thrive.