ROBERT NORTH

The American dancer/choreographer Robert North was born in Charleston, South Carolina (1945) but established his career and reputation in London, where he enrolled at the Central School of Arts before studying dance with Kathleen Crofton, at the Royal Ballet School (1965-7) and London School of Contemporary Dance (1966), becoming a founder member of London Contemporary Dance Theatre (LCDT) in 1967. He returned to the USA to study with Merce Cunningham and join Martha Graham's company, but rejoined LCDT in 1969, for whom he choreographed many works, from the seminal Troy Game (1974) to Death and the Maiden and Songs and Dances (1981), becoming Associate Choreographer (1975) and co-Artistic Director (1981).

As Associate Choreographer (from 1975) and Artistic Director (1981-1986) of Ballet Rambert, Mr North choreographed further works including Pribaoutki (1982), Colour Moves (1983) and Entre Dos Aguas (1984). He also worked widely in opera, film, TV, revue and theatre, creating works for Batsheva Dance Company, English National Ballet, Geneva Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet, and Stuttgart Ballet, taught contemporary dance at the Royal Ballet School, was Ballet Director at Turin (1990-1) and Verona (1997-9), and Artistic Director of Gothenburg Ballet (1991-6), then Scottish Ballet (1999-2002).

For these, and other companies worldwide, Mr North has choreographed to the music of Schubert (Einsame Reise 1985 and A Stranger I Came 1992), Offenbach (Offenbacj in the Underworld 1995), Copland (Dances to Copland 1985 and Living in America 1991), Shostakovitch (Elvira Madigan 1987 and Hamlet 1997), Prokofiev (Romeo & Juliet 1990) and Orff (Carmina Burana 1990). His hugely successful staging of The Snowman to Howard Blake's music (1993) has been revived annually, and his works remain in constant demand internationally.

©Tim Tubbs