Dance Limerick and Limerick Arts Office, Limerick City and County Council are pleased to announce that contemporary dance artist Megan Kennedy will be Limerick’s first Dance Artist-in-Residence. Megan will be in residence at Dance Limerick until June 2015, during which time she will create a new collaborative dance work, engage with local dance artists and initiatives and teach professional classes. The Dance Artist Residency scheme is a partnership between the artist, Dance Limerick and Limerick Arts Office, Limerick City and County Council and is funded by the Arts Council. The residency is based at Dance Limerick, John’s Square.
Originally from the US, Megan Kennedy trained at the renowned Alvin Ailey Dance Center in New York City and received a BA Honours Degree from Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh. She is Co-Artistic Director of the award-winning junk ensemble, based in Dublin, and has toured internationally with junk ensemble and other well-known theatre and dance production companies, including CoisCéim and Brokentalkers. Megan is a Director of Dance Ireland and a Fellow of Salzburg Global Seminar.
Announcing details of the Dance Artist-in-Residence scheme, Jenny Traynor, Director of Dance Limerick, said “We’re really pleased that Megan will be our first Dance Artist-in-Residence. Megan is a highly creative and innovative dancer and choreographer who was selected for this role following an open competitive application process. This scheme presents the opportunity for a professional dance artist to work creatively and collaboratively within the local community to develop inspiring new work and we’re really looking forward to seeing what this exciting new project brings to the dance community and beyond in Limerick”.
Dr Pippa Little, Assistant Arts Officer with Limerick City and County Council, stated: “We look forward to supporting Megan in exploring her brief over the coming months, as she develops a new collaborative dance work for the spring. She brings a new energy and vitality to the dance sector in Limerick City and County and will develop new audiences for dance. The possibilities for her project will only become apparent when she undertakes the research phase, exploring Limerick, meeting people and engaging with their experiences”.
Megan Kennedy added “I’m delighted to have been chosen as Limerick’s first Dance Artist-in-Residence and to begin my residency in this vibrant city. I look forward to engaging with different arts and health sectors in Limerick and collaborating with dance artists, creators and designers in the city. We will be holding auditions in October for professional dancers for a collaborative dance piece which will be created and performed in 2015 as part of this residency. Details of the application process for these auditions will be posted on www.dancelimerick.ie shortly”.
