ResDance Series 5: Episode 11: Growing up in dance with Siobhan Mitchell
In this episode, Siobhan shares insight into her own background and experiences in dance and her areas of research interests,
alongside her current role as a Research Fellow in in Child and
Adolescent Health at the University of Exeter. Through situating her ideas within evidence based literature, we discuss the challenges young people face when growing up in dance and the role of education in the area of adolescent development. Siobhan shares
insight into both the GuiDANCE project and the GuiDANCE Network (which she founded) which aim to review practices and propose guidelines in the dance sector around
growth and development. Throughout the episode, Siobhan reflects upon her current research endeavours and the importance of encouraging an openness of conversation and the potential for working collaboratively across disciplines and research spaces.
Siobhan trained vocationally as a dancer before completing a BA Hons in Dance Studies (University of Roehampton), an MSc in Dance Science (Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance) and an MRes in Health and Wellbeing (University of Bath). Awarded a full ESRC studentship in 2014, Siobhan completed her doctorate in 2018 and currently works as a Research Fellow in Child and Adolescent Health at the University of Exeter. Siobhan’s doctoral
research explored the psychological and social implications of early and late maturation in adolescent ballet dancers. More recently, Siobhan led the GuiDANCE project and founded the GuiDANCE Network, a collaboration which aims to review practices in the dance sector around growth and development and
propose guidelines for the sector going forward. Siobhan is passionate about education in the area of adolescent development and regularly delivers workshops for dance teachers, dance students and parents of young dancers.
Contact details:
Email: theadolescentdancer@gmail.com
Instagram: @Siobhan_Dance
Website: www.theadolescentdancer.com
Other Social Media handles: @GuiDANCEProjec1
Published Resources:
https://www.onedanceuk.org/what-we-do/professional-bodies-and-partners/the-guidance-network
Please share this episode with students, educators, practitioners, performers, and interdisciplinary researchers curious to learn more about dance research in action.
