Biography
Kirstie Simson (UK) has been a continuous explosion in the contemporary dance scene, bringing audiences into contact with the vitality of pure creation in moment after moment of virtuoso improvisation. Called “a force of nature” by the New York Times, she is an award-winning dancer and teacher who has “immeasurably enriched and expanded the boundaries of New Dance” according to Time Out Magazine, London. Simson’s eternal subject is freedom, as she dares to go beyond the boundaries of form and structure to create movement out of the rhythm of life itself.
For the past forty-five years Kirstie has had a committed Dance Improvisation practice, collaborating with many dancers and musicians who share a common interest in Improvisation, including Steve Paxton, Nancy Stark Smith, Simone Forti, Michael Schumacher, Russell Malliphant, Charlie Morrissey and musician Le Quan Ninh. She was awarded a London Time Out ‘Dance and Performance Award’ as “a unique figure in the dance world” and Jennifer Dunning of the New York Times said of her dancing “Kirstie Simson is justly celebrated in Britain for exquisite, sensuous dancing that seems to come from some simple force of nature”.
She is renowned today as an excellent teacher and captivating performer who is a leading light in the field of Dance Improvisation. She is invited to teach and perform all over the world working with major dance companies including Sasha Waltz and Guests; DV8; Cloud Gate Dance Theater of Taiwan, teaching in universities and conservatories, in performance festivals and private studios.
A documentary film has been made about her work by filmmaker Katrina McPherson called Force of Nature available through Amazon.com.
Kirstie spent thirteen years as an Associate Professor teaching improvisation in the Department of Dance at the University of Illinois, USA. In August 2020 she returned to her home base in Wales from where she continues to explore and share her work as an Independent Artist throughout the world.