Northern Rascals, a dance theatre company based in Calderdale, have been announced as the first recipient of a prestigious new Co-Commission. Established in 2021, Dance in the North is a consortium of 10 arts organisations committed to dance artist development and programming dance. Last year the consortium announced the launch of a brand-new co-commission offering £12,500 to a dance artist or company based in the North of England to develop a new work.  

Award winning Northern Rascals, led by Anna Holmes and Sam Ford, secured the co-commission with their proposal for Coiners. This new performance is inspired by the extraordinary true story of the Cragg Vale Coiners; an 18th-century counterfeiting gang from the Pennine hills. Beneath the folklore, the piece will uncover a working-class story of community, hardship and the lengths people will go to survive. Since 2017, the Company have created dance performances rooted in Northern stories, communities and lived experience. Blending dance, theatre and storytelling, they describe themselves as nurturing, honest and responsibly rebellious.  

Rooted in Northern folklore, Coiners explores themes of community, care, survival and resistance, asking what drives people to challenge systems of power. Blending movement, music and poetry, the production will uncover the stories, contradictions and moral questions at the heart of the Coiners’ legacy, creating a bold new work that speaks to the present through the lens of the past. 

Northern Rascals said: 

“We’re excited to use this opportunity to dream bigger, take artistic risks and deepen our relationships with communities across the North. The support of the Dance in the North partners will give us the time, space and expertise to explore where Coiners wants to go, while ensuring the work remains rooted in the people, places and stories that inspired it.” 

As well as £12,500, the consortium will support the development of Coiners by offering studio space, advice and performance opportunities across the North. The co-commission is supported by Yorkshire Dance, Cheshire Dance, Lancaster Arts, Dance City & Lowry, with advice and support from the wider Dance in the North partnership. 

Hannah Robertshaw, Creative Director of Yorkshire Dance who heads up the consortium explains:

‘There is immense talent in the dance scene in the North of England, but artists here often have limited touring opportunities and lack of investment in their work, which can stifle creative ambition. The Dance in the North consortium are on a mission to change this, and the co-commission is a significant step. We not only want to support talented choreographers but we’re also passionate about ensuring audiences across the North have the chance to watch the most exciting, inspiring dance in the UK. 

The consortium is thrilled to announce Coiners as the first work which will be supported by this commission. The work is ambitious and rooted in universal themes of struggle, resistance and power. Although Coiners takes inspiration from a historical story, it feels incredibly relevant to now. It feels like an exciting journey we can embark on together which will hopefully pave the way for future commissions for Northern based dance artists.’

Image: Northern Rascals © Tim Dunk