African Routes 2026: Fair Play – Day 2

Akeim Toussaint Buck

Akeim Toussaint Buck is an award-winning interdisciplinary performer and maker, born in Jamaica and raised in Leeds, England. He attended and graduated from The Northern School of Contemporary Dance. Akeim began creating his own work in 2016 launching Toussaint To Move with the creation of ‘Windows of Displacement’. TTM’S intention is to create moving, thought-provoking, accessible and free-spirited projects. Exploring a variety of themes to challenge, enlighten and entertain audiences viscerally, calling on multiple art forms to weave a spectacle. Audiences are invited not just to observe; they are implicit in the experience. The work aims to reflect on reality, looking at ongoing socio-political issues, with a humanitarian intention.

Toussaint’s work combines dance theatre, film, poetry, beatbox, singing, songwriting and acting. These elements fuse to tell stories capable of bridging the gap between a variety of audiences. His movement is informed by numerous methodologies: Kickboxing, Yoga, Capoeira, Caribbean Dance, Hip Hop and Contemporary Dance. His music inspirations interplay between jazz, reggae and soul. Improvisation is an imperative part of Toussaint’s practice involving embodied listening, vocalisation and dance. This artist embraces the holistic potential of performance to translate the affective dimension of living for and dreaming of a better world.

nora chipaumire

nora chipaumire was born in Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe – nora chipaumire makes work and creates ideas that straddle multiple imaginaries — African, black, woman. A life lived through aesthetics informed by refusal, defiance, negotiation, contradictions and more. These refusals take form of movement, objects, non objects, manifestos, sound and building a pedagogical practice (nhaka) that works the present now with the present past.

David Blake

David Blake is a London based creative director, choreographer, performing -arts educator, leadership consultant and professional coach.

His journey began in Jamaica, where he became a principal dancer with the National Dance Theatre Company. His career later took him to the United States, where he worked across stage and screen, including on the feature film Dreamgirls. After moving to London, David spent 17 years in “Disney’s the Lion King” in the West End and later appeared as a featured dancer in “Wicked for Good”. These experiences provided the artistic foundation for work that has continued to develop beyond the stage.

Over time, David moved into choreography, movement direction, education and leadership. His portfolio includes projects with the BBC, The London Borough of Camden and Ernst & Young. He also served as the inaugural Director of Dance and Musical Theatre at Urdang, City St Georges, University of London, where he was responsible for the strategic and educational direction of its dance and musical theatre provision. David is the founder of Blake Arts, a multidisciplinary dance company and professional development organisation supporting artists at different stages of their careers. His wider practice brings together creative direction, artistic development, professional coaching and consultancy. His contribution to the sector has been recognised with the Black British Theatre Award for Best Teacher of Performing Arts. His dance film “Melanin Migration – Brothers in Arms”, received a Once Dance UK Award nomination and has been screened and presented internationally at festivals and cultural platforms in the United States and Canada.

David holds an MA in Arts Administration and Cultural Policy from Goldsmiths University of London, and a BA in business Administration (Marketing) from California State University.

David currently serves on the Board of Directors of the International Association of Blacks in Dance (IABD), as a Trustee of Dancers’ Career Development (DCD) and on the advisory board for Bayes Business Schools’ Executive Masters in the Leadership for the Creative Industries

Nathan Powell

Nathan joined as Creative Director in 2024 and his first production will be as a writer, with Takeaway, premiering in April 2025.

Previously Artistic Director of the National Student Drama Festival (NSDF), Nathan has championed emerging talent and forged groundbreaking partnerships, showcasing some of the most exciting new work from across the country. He was the Creative Producer and Associate Artist for 20 Stories High (an Associate Company of the theatres) and is co-founder of New Step Theatre with writer Joe Ward Munrow (their production of DOGS was a sellout in the Playhouse Studio in 2022).

As a director his recent credits include Alice in Wonderland (Shakespeare North Playhouse); The Mountaintop (Leicester Curve and UK Tour); Sucker Punch (Queens Theatre Hornchurch in association with the National Theatre) and A Play for the Living in the Time of Extinction (Headlong and The Barbican in association with Shakespeare North).

As writer and adapter, credits include: Pleasant Land and Homegirl (Derby Theatre).

Yusra Warsama

Yusra Warsama is a performance poet, actor, writer, and theatre practitioner based in Manchester. Her work spans spoken word, storytelling, live art, and physical performance,

Yusra began her theatre career in Manchester while studying BA (Hons) Criminology and Sociology and has since worked nationally and internationally across theatre and interdisciplinary performance. Her collaborations include Grace and Make–Believe with Quarantine, exploring one-to-one performance beyond traditional character-driven theatre, and landmark spoken word theatre with  Don Letts’ Speakers Corner.

She develops ambitious solo work, including her triptych. Of All the Beautiful Things In The World (2023) opened to sold-out audiences, and she is currently developing Triptych 2: Prodigal Sons with the Royal Shakespeare Company, alongside new work for Manchester International Festival 2027 (MIF27) and a project inspired by Arawelo, the Somali warrior queen. On the continent Yusra is currently making new work for  The National Swedish Touring Theatre)

Yusra is founder of BIG SOUL delivering projects such as “Same Roots, Different Branches”, a cross-cultural exchange connecting young people and individuals with experiences of migration. She continues to work extensively with young people and community groups, fostering creativity, collaboration, and shared storytelling. And “Mancunian Nomads” in partnership with Manchester Museum, a three phased artifact reclamation project – centralising marginalised elders as the experts of their history

IRIE! dance theatre

IRIE! dance theatre is Britain’s leading dance theatre company working in the field of African & Caribbean dance fusion. Founded in 1985 by Beverley Glean with the principal aim of heightening the profile of Black dance in Britain, the company set out to create a repertory of works reflective of the African Caribbean influence on the Black British cultural experience.

https://www.iriedancetheatre.org/

Francis Angol/Movement Angol

Francis is the founder and Artistic Director of Movement Angol dance, a UK based Dance Company that produces work which draws from the teachings and practices of dance from the African Diaspora and Western Contemporary dance. Francis other roles are that of Somatic Movement Educator/Therapist, performing artist, choreographer, and Lecturer in dance, working extensively in higher and further education, professional and community practice.

His work is greatly underpinned by Somatic practice which forms the framework for his artistic explorations. His work is deeply rooted in the spirituality of the self, and offers individuals a fresh and creative approach to engaging with their bodies to awaken the inner self through a dialogue of movement, rhythm, dance, imagery, and the imagination. This forms the basis of his “embodied flow” dance practice.

During the course of his career Francis has produced work that has contributed to the enrichment of British dance culture through a range of training programmes, classes, courses, and performance works. His company Movement Angol, was one of the first UK based dance companies to stage the festival of contemporary African dance art – ‘Flat Feet Dance Festival’. This was a performance platform, showcasing works by UK dance artist who draw from the teachings and practices of dance from the African Diaspora in their work.

As well as working in the UK, he has worked overseas and held various artist in residence positions at a number of artistic establishments including the Edna Manley School of Dance in Jamaica, Nigeria State Council – Lagos, Merseyside Dance Initiative (MDI), Singapore – WOMAD, York St John University, to name but a few.

Karen Gallagher MBE

Born in Liverpool, trained at the Laban Centre for Movement and Dance in London in the early 80’s. Set up the dance and mime department for Second Out Theatre Workshop (1986) Programme Manager of 051 Media Training Limited (1991-92), Assistant Director at Cheshire Dance Workshop (1992-94), now Cheshire Dance, becoming Artistic Director of MDI (1994-2018).

A Graduate of Liverpool John Moore’s University (LJMU) in 2007 with an MA in Social Enterprise, received a BMOBO for MDI’s community dance practice (2010) and in 2011 was a runner up for Merseyside Woman of the Year. Awarded an MBE, for services to dance (2012) and awarded an Honorary Fellow of LJMU (2014), and Honorary Life Member of People Dancing (2016). In 2020 set up Karen Gallagher and Associates and works freelance.