Robert Hylton Artistic Director

Biography

Robert's left of centre approach to Hip Hop, theatre, film and contemporary dance choreography has carved an original artist, whose work is ground breaking accessible and thought provoking.

Schooled in early eighties Hip Hop and UK underground Jazz Dance, Robert embraces both Hip Hop (Popping and breaking techniques) Jazz styles and Contemporary Dance to develop his visual movement language.

As a young dancer he joined Bamboozle, a street jazz crew based at Newcastle’s Dance City performing in Dance Umbrella 1990 amongst other festivals. This was followed by vocational training at the Northern School Of Contemporary Dance gaining a BA Dance.

In 2001, Hylton was a nominee for the prestigious Jerwood Choreography Award with 2002, earning him the highly coveted position of an Associate Artist at The Place London, famed for its groundbreaking programs.

Robert formed Robert Hylton Urban Classicism (RHUC) in 1999 creating the solos A Step and Two Steps in Urban Classicism, leading to the success of the full company tours, Life in Urban classicism 02/03, Physical Elements 03/04 and Verse&Verses 05/06 his flourishing company was appointed a Regular Funded Organisation by the Arts Council of England in 2005.

As a performer himself, Robert danced for numerous contemporary dance companies including Phoenix Dance, Jonzi D and as a guest artist with Sheron Wray’s JazzXchange. His teaching credits include international British Council workshops with DJ Billy Biznizz in Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand, Bangkok, Cuba and nationally at Dance Works LTD (Sheffield), Ludus, Merseyside Dance Initiative (Liverpool), Reading McDonalds Our Town story @ The Millennium Dome, plus teaching the Adugna Dance Company, Addis Ababa in Ethiopia 2001.

Robert has performed his solos works in many international festivals such as the Copenhagen Alt Young Blood 01 Dance Festival and once again through the British Council his tours include ones to Prague, Zagreb, Antwerp and 3-week tour of South Africa jointly with Jonzi D, Florence, Cyprus, Lithuania, Mozambique where Robert also choreographed a curtain raiser with the National song and Dance Company of Mozambique and a three-island tour of Indonesia.

Film work includes Urban Classicism, Urban Voodoo and Jaffaman, which was funded by the 2002 Capture Award and shown on 4dance, Channel 4. Educational film commissions include the ground breaking Two Sugars with My Hip Hop please… with a group of pensioners from West London commissioned by the Royal Festival Hall, Robert was also movement director for an educational film The Real Thing commissioned by the Royal Opera House, BBC Blast and East London Dance for a Hip Hop version of La Boheme, and most recently Frames working with young people from Ealing incorporating themes from paintings from the Collection by the National Gallery.