Since arriving in the UK from Australia in 2002, Caroline Bowditch has been mentored by Adam Benjamin, CandoCo and Yael Flexer (Bedlam Dance), and has participated in several residencies with CandoCo. She participated in The Dancers Project (2005, The Place) and underwent training on the Cultural Shift project (2005, East London Dance). She has choreographed and performed work as girl jonah with Fiona Wright and is a founder member of Weave Movement Theatre (Melbourne) and The FATHoM Project (Newcastle). In 2007, she received a Wellcome Trust Arts Award to create Proband, which uses her genetic mutation as the basis for the choreography and music.
Caroline toured with Scottish Dance Theatre (SDT) in Spring 2007, where she helped create and performed in Adam Benjamin’s Angels of Incidence.
She then developed and took on the role of Dance Agent for Change with SDT, a post initiated by former Artistic Director Janet Smith who was interested in breaking down barriers, extending borders in the dance world and exploring new possibilities, creatively, artistically and for the good of culture in Scotland.
This ground breaking role, funded by The National Lottery through Creative Scotland aimed to increase the number of disabled people involved in dance in Scotland, including those entering training or the dance profession. During her 4 years in this post, Caroline has interacted with over 25,000 people in workshops, talks and performances not only in Scotland but in the rest of the UK and beyond.
“[Caroline’s] role has been influential personally and professionally. It demonstrated that a Disabled Dance artist can be professionally acknowledged and professionally valued. The role has been invaluable for young people… as a role model and advocate. There is no doubt that disabled people have their own voice, who better than to advocate for change than someone who knows how much that change in reality makes to an individuals life and in turn to the community.” Dance Agent for Change Collaborator
During her time in Dundee, Caroline has co-directed and performed in two works for SDT: The Long and the Short of It, with Tom Pritchard (20080 and NQR with Janet Smith and Marc Brew (2010).
In October 2011, Caroline won the Creative Scotland Award for the Support of Talent at the Arts & Business Awards. This award honours an individual or organisation that has made a special contribution to nurturing creative talent in Scotland.
In January 2012, the culmination of the Dance Agent for Change post saw SDT organise the Pathways to the Profession Symposium in Dundee which brought industry experts and delegates from across the world together to discuss the challenges faced by disabled people trying to make a career in the performing arts.
”Caroline is a true role model, she has raised the profile throughout Scotland and internationally of the highest quality dance performance by disabled people.” Andrew Dixon, Chief Executive Creative Scotland.
Caroline Bowditch’s Unlimited Commission – Leaving-Limbo-Landing, which will be presented as part of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad programme – explores her sense of home, migration and immigration. Caroline has just chosen to make Glasgow her home for the foreseeable future.