Uillinn and Croi Glan have joined forces to present a new opportunity for a Dance artist with disability, Uillinn Access Dance Award: supporting, developing capacity and performance potential with the West Cork based Integrated Dance Company and increase access in the field of dance.

The Uillinn Access Dance Award will provide a career development resource for an artist to take up a studio residency at Uillinn for up to 10 days, in either a block or smaller parts to suit the needs of the artist. The award also includes a stipend of €2000 with an assist support of €500.

In 2023 and 2024 the Award was by invitation selected by Croi Glan Director Tara Brandel working in consultation with Uillinn Programme Manager Justine Foster. Previous recipients include Tara Brandel (2022) and Tanya Turner (2023) and in 2024 Rachael Paul and Alexander Legain will work on developing their movements for upcoming Croi Glan performance piece, 'Change'. This new work is to be presented by the company in autumn 2024/2025.

In 2025, the fourth year of the award we will open the invitation to enable national submission. Keep an eye on social media for more information.

Uillinn Access Dance Award 2024
Alexandre Legrain and Rachel Paul
Change and I Dream of Water
16-19 July and 22-26 July
Public Event: Friday 26 July at 4pm, sharing of work in progress, UCC and Bollinger Space, free of charge, limited space

Drawing on the themes of the 2 newest dance works that Croí Glan is currently developing, Change and I Dream of Water, Croí Glan's newest disabled dancers Rachel Paul and Alexandre Legrain will be introduced to new integrated dance skill and to Croí Glan's working methods. Working alongside other dancers and dance artists from Croí Glan during the 2 week residency.

The residency will end with a sharing of the work that Rachel and Alexandre have developed in conjunction with the other Croí Glan dancers out of this intensive research period.

With thanks to an Arts Council Arts Grant fund 2024.

"My journey as a performer woth Croi Glan begins under a lucky star, with a residency at Uillinn this July. What a priviledge to have the time to work together and create new pieces of art in the beautiful and vibrant West Cork". Alexandre

Alexandre Legrain
Alex is a wheelchair user originally from France.  He was involved at a very young age in sports, at first martial arts, (judo, taekwondo) then some other individual sports, as well as some amateur drama / performing arts groups in Strasbourg.
After a few years of extensive travel, Alex lived in Cork 2016-17, where he was involved with the Rebel Wheelers sports organisation. He is a wheelchair rugby player.
He has a professional background in the field of adult education, working as a trainer and a counsellor in various institutions (companies, schools, continuing education) with a focus on trainer's training and online education. He is also involved in LGBTQI community centres as a volunteer, especially as a facilitator for anti-discrimination awareness sessions for teens and adults.
Alex has recently joined Croí Glan as a dancer.

Rachel Paul
Rachel discovered integrated dance in 2012. From that moment, she never stopped dancing, and she has worked with several companies in Perú (Kinesfera Danza), Colombia (ConCuerpos), and France (Etrangères).
She has also trained in London with Candoco Dance Company.
In Paris, she organized some events to help integrated dance companies to share their work. Apart from dancing, she's a documentary filmmaker, and she is currently working on a project about the disability rights movement in France.

Award Recipient 2023

Tanya Turner
Finding Myself Through Movement
3 to 7 July and 1 to 5 August 2023

I will be using my time in this creative space to discover myself and the language of my body, as an artist and a dancer with a disability. I will be working both on my own, and also with Tara Brandel as my mentor and dance colleague. We will be dancing, experimenting with different kinds of interactive movements, focusing on the 'feeling, animal body' and acknowledging our primal connection to each other, the environment and how different types of bodies can interplay, balance and support one another. We will also be working on aerial, experimenting with hoops and pole, possibly even silks, as I have used these before but would love to develop them more. I will also be experimenting with this same aerial apparatus on my own. I am excited to try all of the above, but am also nervous about a) My stamina and ability to pace myself enough not to 'burn out' or to injure myself, b) To not 'waste' my time there but make the best of this opportunity! and c) My ability to organise and budget everything wisely, in order to get the help and assistance I need as a person with a disability.

I will be keeping a personal account/blog of my experience, but would also like to engage in a podcast and/or informal interviews with myself, Tara Brandel and others involved in my artist's residency, sharing that with the public during or after the experience.

As a leg amputee since October 2017, I am still learning how to celebrate being in my body. Joining Croi Glan in 2020 really helped me regain confidence in myself as a dancer with a disability. We performed as a group three times in 2021 at the Port of Cork Midsummer Festival, and Skibbereen arts festival. Other projects I've collaborated on include 'Phoenix Wings', a short dance film celebrating felt wings made by disabled artist, Nikki Collier. I have been studying aerial with Hannah Gumbrielle since 2021 at Taking Flight Studio in Dublin, and have also taken online lessons with Erin Ball, a double amputee circus artist, as part of receiving the Agility Award in 2022.

YouTube @tanyaturner4465

WCAC acknowledges the financial support of the Arts Council and Cork County Council in making these residencies possible.