Sam Gilroy is a Dance Artist, Choreographer, Producer, Performer and Teacher based in Southampton.

​

Sam is an interdisciplinary artist who explores socio-political subjects and uncovers personal narratives to inform her devising and teaching practice. Her work often uses a range of disciplines including: dance, theatre, film, original sound, poetry, art and song.

​

Sam works with professional and community artists to create intergenerational, interdisciplinary arts opportunities and performances. She is currently researching creating a new performance work: F WORDZ - an uplifting, feminist, dance & verbatim project raising underrepresented female voices to elevate & empower women of all ages. Inspired to connect and create with women in Southampton which has a rich, culturally diverse population, she is researching how to represent women’s stories using dance.

​

Outreach activities include: Wednesday Women conversations, interviews and podcasts that will be shared and available with Hampshire Archives Trust. 

​

Sam is also Project Manager for the brilliant DANCE SIX-0 Company of dancers aged 60 and over who rehearse in Salisbury. Sam worked as Project Coordinator for Art Asia's Mayflower 400 Project: Belonging that resulted in an exhibition at Westquay Shopping Centre of paper boats, stories, poetry, video and songs created by 100 Southampton residents. Sam was Assistant Producer on Surf The Wave UK Dance Showcase with Pavilion Dance South West in 2019.

​

A performer and collaborator performing a range of site-specific works, Sam performed at Stourhead National Trust with choreographer Hayley Barker The Hunt, The Blossom The Mother (2019), and dances with Reside Dance C.I.C in Reading, performing works inspired by the history of the city including: Vote 100 (2018) and Home at The Rising Sun (2018). Sam has performed at North Devon Fringe Theatre Festival with Taw Dance Company (2016) and with Lucy Freeman (2014 & 2015). In 2013, Sam worked with Katie Dale-Everett to perform a live dance-installation during H2Dance's residency at The Albert, London. Sam has worked with choreographers: Emilyn Claid, Grace Nicol, Jonathan Burrows, Kerry Nicholls, Kuldip Singh Barmi, Rick Nodine, Lîla Dance Company and Ofra Idel  to national and international audiences.

​

In 2018, sam created work as Artistic Director for Nexus Dance Theatre and was awarded funding from Arts Council England to lead a successful R&D project: InterArt: InterLaced - a performance about ageing and empathy, performed by 8 dancers aged 9 - 73 years old. Since then, Sam has developed her practices to offer Movement, Art and Poetry (MAP) workshops to explore topical themes e.g. ageing and empathy, with the aim of bringing community members of all ages and abilities together to collaborate and to express themselves creatively, using cross-art forms.

​

Teaching since 2011, Sam teaches early years, 6 -18 year olds, adults, young people and adults with learning disabilities, youth and professional dancers, Dance for Parkinson's and adults with dementia, offering a range of classes and workshops that focus on moving, exploring sound and props, and having fun!  

 

Sam has an MA in Dance Performance from University of Chichester, where she was a member of the Post Graduate touring company Mapdance in 2015, and was awarded a First Class BA in Dance from Falmouth University and Dartington School of Arts in 2014.

 

​