Chisenhale Dance Space (CDS) is East London’s champion of experimentation in dance & performance for more than 40 years. We support an organic membership of 100+ experimental artists who shape our programmes, ethos, & ethics. Our members span all ages & roles within experimental performance: as performers, choreographers, teachers, curators, producers & advocates for change in the sector. Our core purposes are to:

• Offer artist support
• Give access to affordable & flexible studio hire
• Host classes for children and adults
• Present a boundary-pushing performance programme
• Be a place for artists to take risks, learn from each other & benefit from our communal resources

Experimentation is at the heart of what we do – we seek to challenge how work is made & who gets to make it, with an emphasis on risk-taking & process over product. We aim to make positive change in the arts by developing working practices that are transparent, ethical, anti-racist, anti-ableist, environmentally conscious, & non-discriminatory.

Over 40 years, we have been a home for some of the most radical artists in the UK, often long before their work is recognised by the wider sector. We see ourselves as a testing ground for artists to take risks and develop their practices without institutional gatekeeping, at moments in their careers when they can’t access other institutional support.