Jasmin Vardimon
A leading force in British dance theatre for twenty years, Jasmin Vardimon has built a reputation for challenging, exciting and visually stunning dance and continues to add to the body of critically acclaimed, artistically respected yet accessible work both for the company she formed in 1998 and for some of the leading arts institutions she works with across the world.
Born and raised on a Kibbutz in central Israel, she was a member of the Kibbutz Dance Company for five years and in 1995 was awarded the prestigious British Council ‘On the Way to London’ Choreography Award. This was to take her on a journey that saw her move to the UK permanently in the late nineties. At the same time she founded Jasmin Vardimon Company (previously Zbang) for which she has created some of her most memorable work. An Associate Artist at Sadler’s Wells since 2006, Jasmin has also been recognised with the positions of Associate Artist at The Place in 1998 and at Yorkshire Dance as a Partner from 1999 – 2005.
Jasmin has also been commissioned to choreograph for the Royal Opera House (Tannhäuser, 2010 & 2016), Lyric Opera of Chicago (Tannhäuser, 2015) and for ROH2′s OperaShots season with composer Graham Fitkin at the Linbury Studio (Home, 2012). Other commissions include creations for Bitef Theatre Belgrade, Hellenic Dance Athens, CandoCo, WID, Bare Bones, Transitions and curating the Dance Ballads Festival at the Ovalhouse. In 2013, Jasmin took on the role of Guest Artistic Director for the first year of the newly formed National Youth Dance Company (NYDC).
She is the recipient of numerous awards including: Arts Council England’s Exceptional Award in partnership with Turner Contemporary (2014), The Kent Culture Artist and Canterbury Awards (2014), the Dimitrije Parlić Award, Serbia’s most prestigious award for Choreography (2013), the International Theatre Institute Award for Excellence in International Dance (2013); the Jerwood Foundation’s ‘Changing Stages’ Award (2004), The Jerwood Choreography Award (2000), amongst many more. Jasmin Vardimon Company is a National Portfolio Organisation funded by Arts Council England.
Jasmin has been a Visiting Professor at the University of Wolverhampton since 2011. She developed a Higher Education programme for dancers and actors, led by her company as a postgraduate certificate at Royal Holloway University London; in 2012 launched JV2, a full-time Professional Development Diploma programme; and in 2016, JVIntensive programme. In 2014 she received an honorary doctorate from Royal Holloway, University of London. In 2018 she received an honorary fellowship from the Institute Arts Barcelona.