I have had the privilege to have known and worked alongside Stuart Hayes for over 10 years, which has enriched my work as a teacher and choreographer. We have had the good fortune to inspire one another in our respective dance genres, which has been great for the students when they see us work together. This connection will be brought to NDC, and, upon having the good fortune to meet Nadine and develop a teaching/artistic relationship with her also, the college will develop dancers of the highest calibre in a nurturing environment along with the artistic vision of producing performers of the highest order.
I believe in merging the old with the new – the old school values of the past combined with a golden vision for future all-round performers. I am very excited and honoured to work Stuart and Nadine, two great artists in their own right, and with the hand-picked faculty, I am in no doubt NDC College will be a major success. “A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step.”
Stewart was one of the foremost black Jazz and Lyrical artists of his generation and the original pioneer of Lyrical Contemporary Jazz in the UK. He became one of our most acclaimed and sought-after international dancers/teachers/choreographers, credits including Wayne Sleep, Elton John, Kate Bush, Sadlers Wells, West End, Move It and Can You Dance?. He featured as a soloist dancer in Johnny Depp’s film ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ and had his own dance series on Channel 4, along with Claude-Paul Henry, called ‘Streets Ahead’, as well as working on The Hot Shoe Show. As a teacher, Stewart was one of the founder/pioneer teachers at the famous Pineapple Studios in London where he taught for over 15 years - indeed, he has taught at big-name establishments all over the world from home to Japan and everywhere in between where students have included Louis Spence and Mel B of the Spice Girls.