Founded in 2002, Instant Dissidence is a Leeds-based Dance Theatre company that creates work exuberating theatrical tension, romantic visual designs and intricately choreographed movement. It distorts reality with a dreamlike logic and it seduces audiences with beautiful images that have a dark depth.

The company’s vision is the investigation of the human condition, and it makes use of performativity as a ‘safe’ space of play from where to explore the most uncomfortable parts of our humanity.

Under the artistic direction of award-winning choreographer Rita Marcalo (recipient of a Lisa Ullman Award, an Interact Award, a Creative Futures Award, and shortlisted for the Caroline Plummer fellowship) the company has developed a unique aesthetic drawing on a blend of raw physicality, strong contemporary dance technique, theatrical narrative and highly visual imagery.

Over the past 10 years Marcalo has developed a career both as a performer and a choreographer. She has danced with companies such as Carol Brown Dances, Lisbon Dance Company, Aveiro Dance Company, Emilyn Claid, and I.O.U. Theatre. She features in the dance film 'Remember to Forget' choreographed by Emilyn Claid and directed by Lucy Baldwin, and in Claire Blundell-Jones live art work ‘Kissing’.

Her choreographic work has been commissioned by Leeds University, Ferens Arts Gallery, York St. John University, Community Dance York, Yorkshire Dance, and Essexdance, and it has been toured in the UK and abroad (Portugal and Belgium). Marcalo currently features in the book 'Performing Nature. Explorations in Ecology and the Arts'. (2006) by Gabriella Giannachi and Nigel Stewart (eds).

Instant Dissidence’s work is currently supported/funded by:

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