Lea Anderson

LEA ANDERSON MBE Choreographer and Artistic Director

---

Founder and Artistic Director of The Cholmondeleys and The Featherstonehaughs, Lea Anderson has choreographed over 100 original works for her companies. After graduating from the Laban Centre, Lea formed The Cholmondeleys with Teresa Barker and Gaynor Coward in 1984. Branching out from their early performance roots in pubs and clubs, The Cholmondeleys’ have grown with more dancers and have championed the use of specially commissioned live music for each piece. They are now one of the leading British dance companies, with a growing reputation in Europe. In 1988 Lea formed The Featherstonehaughs, at this time the only all-male dance company working in Britain. An eclectic group of men, with diverse performance backgrounds, the company presented a refreshing alternative to the conventional image of to men in dance and before long they equalled the success of their sister company.

In 2002 Lea was awarded an MBE for her services to dance as well as being one of the first post-modern choreographers to be compulsorily studied on the GCSE syllabus. In 2003 Lea was Artist in Residence at the University of California, Davies and the Circus Space in London. 2004 marked the 20th anniversary of The Cholmondeleys, which was celebrated with a hugely successful retrospective touring production Double Take which consisted of Flesh & Blood, an early Cholmondeleys work recreated and performed by The Featherstonehaughs, and Double Take, witty highlights from early Featherstonehaughs’ repertoire, performed by The Cholmondeleys.

Lea has also been at the forefront of promoting and producing dance for both the small and large screens. Two series of Tights Camera Action were commissioned by Channel 4 (1992 and 94) and Lea created the choreography for the Todd Haynes’ film Velvet Goldmine (2000) as well choreographing and directing numerous short films including BBC and Arts Council commissions. Most recently she directed a re-worked for camera version of the companies’ 2004 touring production Double Take, which has had been screened at cinemas and festivals around the world. In addition, Lea has a track record in large-scale, site-specific community projects including choreography for the French Revolution Bicentennial Celebrations in Paris in 1989; Stargazer, commissioned by Tate St Ives for the 1999 solar eclipse in Cornwall; and Sportorama, a performance involving 140 sports people, musicians and dancers at The Crystal Palace Sports Centre in London.

In summer 2006, Lea completed the company’s most ambitious educational project to date: Flag 2006. This recreation of her 1988 work involved the creation of two new companies, The Colquhouns and The Marchbanks, and a band, BabbleBand, using 12 to 19-year-old dancers and musicians. They undertook a professional tour of the south east.