Eliot Smith Dance (ESD) continues its 15th anniversary year with a dynamic Summer 2026 Season featuring international residency, new digital insights, guest choreography, and professional training.
The season begins with an international residency in New York (22 April – 3 May) at the Taylor Centre for Dance Education, home to the Paul Taylor Dance Company, where Eliot Smith will begin developing HUNTER, a new solo work inspired by the early industrial era of Wallsend (North Tyneside), particularly its maritime and shipbuilding history. Marking Smith’s return to the stage in almost five years, the work also draws on Paul Taylor’s early creative life, creating a dialogue between North East heritage and the legacy of one of America’s most influential choreographers. The residency continues ESD’s long-standing relationship with the Taylor organisation and is supported by The Abderrahim Crickmay Charitable Settlement and the Paul Taylor Dance Foundation.
In June, ESD premieres In Motion: Eliot Smith and the Story of ESD on ESD Online (24 June). Directed by award-winning filmmaker Elijah McDonnell, the documentary reflects on fifteen years of building a contemporary dance company in the North East.
The summer also welcomes guest choreographer Lorenzo Pagano, internationally recognised dancer and Guest Principal Artist with the Martha Graham Dance Company, who returns to Newcastle to restage Interrupted Souls, originally commissioned by ESD in 2016. As part of the project, Pagano will lead a Graham Technique Masterclass at Dance City (3 July) for professional dancers and dancers in training, followed by a special open rehearsal of the work.
The season concludes with the ESD Summer Intensive (29–31 July) at Newcastle Dance Centre. Alongside this, ESD continues its commitment to community engagement through youth workshops across Northumberland throughout the summer.
Visit www.eliotsmithdance.com/summer2026 for more information.
