​'The clock is ticking. 'The Word' is at risk. Two rival groups hide in a disused place, an abandoned archive. They hash out clues to a feud fuelled by fragments from the past. Reaching across the Before, Now and After, the group fights, dreams and grapples with scattered pieces of truth and memory to save 'The Word'.

St Martins’ most artistically ambitious work to date brings together an ensemble of eleven young, diverse performers with a cohort of established practitioners. Inside the imposing architecture of Abbotsford Convent 'The Word' reaches across epochs, emerging out of an organic process of young people digging for light inside recent dark years via creative endeavour and artistic expression. 'The Word' wrestles with systems of power to reclaim and rewrite new future trajectories. 'The Word' erupts from the seam between inner (personal) and outer (political) words and worlds, where young people have been quietly waiting behind masks, walls, and doonas.'  ​​​

Supported by The British Council 'New Perspectives' project

From self-taught breakdancers and Hip Hop archivers, to community Flamenco dancers and Bharatanatyam teachers, from artists on the fringes to those in the mainstream, as well as young people and students creating futures, this project celebrates how people are dancing and contributing to change and development of self and community in their own unique ways.

In an exciting first-time collaboration.‘On The Hour: Dance Kahanyan’ brings together internationally respected Choreographic and Dance Artists Wahab Shah (Pakistan) and Bridget Fiske (UK), in an essential and celebratory investigation of what dance is and means for various individuals and communities in both urban and rural areas of Pakistan and the UK in 2022. 

Via on-the-ground research, interviews, and creative exchanges in both Karachi and Manchester, as well as community engagement projects this project creates: a new short documentary that shares the experience of Fiske and Shah in each other’s cities and brings forward the voices, dances, and experiences of young people, artists, and communities in each place at this moment in time, and two new short dance films made with young people in rural areas of each country, Cumbria in England and Harsuk in Pakistan.

Through this project, Fiske and Shah also delve into an exchange of practices and approaches informed by both their own histories, in order to gestate new creative ideas informing their work with others and each other.

Co-Artistic Directors.....BRIDGET FISKE and WAHAB SHAH

Producers.....WAHAB SHAH DANCE COMPANY and INSPIRATE

Project Producers.....HUSSAIN ZAIDI, and INSPIRATE

Composers.....ALI HAMZA, and SARAH SAYEED

Screenings & Events

Pakistan: From youth centres, to culture centres, and in communities, 'On The Hour: Dance Kahanyan, was screened in across Pakistan for communities and public audiences, including: Lacas School - PLAN B society (Lahore), PNCA (Islamabad), Harsukh (Lahore, Theatre Village), Street Dreamers Crewe community (Karachi), The Colony, District 19 (Karachi) , Olompolo (Lahore), Alhmarah Cultural Center  (Lahore), Esa Nagri (Karachi), Rose Youth Point (Karachi, Liyari), and Farzana School of Excellence (Karachi, Esa Nagri)

UK: An Indian Summer Festival', 2023, Curve, Leicester, England, and 'Where Is Home', MAC, Birmingham, England. These events also engaged local dance artists (including youth and emerging) in a day long workshop where they engaged in Fiske and Shah's shared collaborative process. The outcomes of this workshop were presented as part of the screening event.

A creative, rehearsal, and production project with 2nd and 3rd year Bachelor of Arts Dance students at University of Salford. Co-created and Directed with Joseph Lau as Project Auske.

'Seeing The Electric'

Created by Bridget Fiske with the students of The Lowry CAT; A score for 50 + dancers to perform live together as an ensemble on Zoom, utilising performance philosophies and scores from the collaborative multi-modal international project 'They Gather'. ​

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'Wildflowers'

Choreographed by Bridget Fiske, Lyndsey Thomas, andstudents of The Lowry CAT; An ensemble work created for live stage performance. Performed at the Quays Theatre, The Lowry, Salford, UK.​

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'The Frame We Move Through'

Created by Bridget Fiske and students of The Lowry CAT; A dance for camera work, exhibited as part of the exhibition 'In The Frame' at The Lowry Galleries, Salford, UK.

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'Walking Manchester'

Created by Anne Wilson. Bridget Fiske: Collaborating Choreographer; Presented as part of 'COTTON: Global Threads' at The Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester, UK.​

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'On The Wire'

Created by Bridget Fiske, Andrew Crofts and students of The Lowry CAT; A live and interactive digital video work, originally commissioned for Digit Fest (The Lowry) and presented during the CAT season Modulate at The Lowry.​

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Rehearsal direction and support artist on works choreographed by: Joss Arnott, Akram Khan Company, Francis Angel, Ugly Bucket, and Phil Sanger.

A creative process using performance philosophies, material, choreographic processes, scores and subjects from the multi-modal and international collaborative project 'They Gather'.

Created by Bridget Fiske and Participants; Performed at Manchester Art Gallery, UK.

A Dance and Astrophysics project working with astrophysicists, Dr Rowan Smith, Norman Lockyer Fellow at Jodrell Bank, University of Manchester and Dr Helen Mason of the University of Cambridge, with additional support from Philippa Browning, Professor of Astrophysics at Jodrell Bank, University of Manchester. ​

Performed at the Great Primary Science Share at Manchester Town Hall, the Great Science Share Takeover for Secondary school students at the Museum of Science and Industry, Manchester Day and as part of Signatures Youth Dance Trail, a partnership project by Dance Manchester and the Lowry, presented as part of UDance, the national youth dance festival. ​​​

A creative, rehearsal, and production project with 2nd and 3rd year Bachelor of Arts Dance students at University of Salford.

A large scale work performed by over 400 young people and youth dance leaders from across the North of England, performed at Rugby League Magic Weekend at St James's Park, Newcastle.

A Company Chameleon and Dance Manchester partnership project.

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Engaging young men across the 10 boroughs of Greater Manchester in workshops and, creative performance projects; Performance outcomes at British Dance Edition (Birmingham Hippodrome), Victoria Baths, The Lowry, Urban Moves International Dance Festival,in Heilbronn Germany and more.

The Lowry Youth Theatre Company

MAD Dance House

River City Dance

Cecchetti Queensland

Corinda High School

St Aidan's Anglican Girls School

Indooroopilly Montessori Kindergarten