This panel brings together artists, producers and changemakers to explore how class shapes opportunity, access and visibility in the arts, while shining a light on the progress already being made. From grassroots innovation to breaking down barriers, we’ll ask: how can we keep building a sector where everyone has the chance to take part and be seen?
To consider those questions, we’ve invited a panel of industry experts including Neil Griffiths, co-founder and Chief Executive of Arts Emergency; Dancing Class podcasters Rachel Krische and Laura Griffiths; and multidisciplinary theatre maker and BAC Next Gen Producer Sahra Warsame. The discussion will be facilitated by broadcaster and journalist Brenda Emmanus OBE.
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BSL-interpreted version
Meet the panellists
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Brenda Emmanus OBE
Broadcaster & Journalist
Brenda Emmanus OBE (she/her)
Broadcaster & Journalist
London (UK)
Brenda Emmanus OBE has had a consistent and varied career as a Broadcaster and Journalist working across print, radio and television. She has built her career and reputation across a range of genre from news and current affairs, popular factual, travel and fashion.
After graduating from the Polytechnic of Central London (now Westminster University), Brenda immediately started work as a print journalist before joining the BBC.
Working first as a researcher in news and current affairs, she went on to become a reporter and assistant producer before a stint as a freelance presenter working for Channel 4, ITV and Sky and across public service and commercial radio stations.
In a career that spans over 30 years Brenda has spent a significant part as an Arts, Culture and Entertainment Correspondent for the BBC. She presented the groundbreaking BBC Fashion programme, The Clothes Show, as well as documentaries on Princess Diana, Tate Modern, the history of Black British Artists and the British Designers that shaped the world, and is consistently called to host cultural and commercial events.
Brenda has interviewed some of the biggest names in arts and entertainment – from Oprah Winfrey, Maya Angelou, David Hockney and Robert Redford to Whitney Houston to Sir Elton John, Carlos Acosta, Angelina Jolie and Tom Cruise.
She was awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2019 for services to Broadcasting and Diversity, was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of the Arts in 2022 and a Community Honours Award in the House of Lords (2017), amongst numerous accolades for her work.
She is a Non-Executive Director at Faber Publishers , Chair of the Board of Trustees for Sir Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures Dance Company and a member of the Editorial Board of the Royal Academy Magazine. Brenda is sole Director of Free Spirit, an independent production company and has recently been appointed to the Mayor’s Cultural Leadership Board.
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Dr Laura Griffiths
Senior Lecturer in Dance
Credit Lizzie Coombes
Dr Laura Griffiths (she/her)
Senior Lecturer in Dance
Leeds (UK)
Laura is Senior Lecturer in Dance at Leeds Beckett University. Her research interests cohere around the relationship between dance and archives including the role of oral narrative in documenting the past.
Recent research has investigated the role of dance content on social media as modes of social connection and as an archival method. Laura is active in advocacy for the best practice in dance teaching, access and inclusivity in Higher Education within her role as Vice Chair of Dance HE, the national representative body for academics and practitioners in Higher Education Dance Departments.
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Dr Rachel Krische
Performer & Academic Researcher
Credit Lizzie Coombes
Dr Rachel Krische (she/her)
Performer & Academic Researcher
Leeds (UK)
With a performance career spanning over 33 years, Rachel has performed, made work, movement directed, conducted research and taught extensively in diverse, international contexts.
She has collaborated with over 30 different artists/companies such as Deborah Hay, La Ribot, Akram Khan, & Siobhan Davies. Within academic research, Rachel investigates embodied knowledge, embodied cognition, body as archive and social class in dance within art practice and education. She mentors artists and post-graduate students and is a member of advisory panels within the professional sector. Occasionally she still busts a few moves … in front of an audience.
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Neil Griffiths
Co-founder & Chief Executive, Arts Emergency
Photo: Vanessa Ng
Neil Griffiths (he/him)
Co-founder & Chief Executive, Arts Emergency
London (UK)
Neil Griffiths is the co-founder and Chief Executive of Arts Emergency, a national grassroots movement which opens doors for under-resourced young people to access and thrive in creativity and culture, through 1:1 mentoring and long-term support.
A lifelong activist and campaigner, Neil has worked across global rights campaigns and human rights charities. He was named one of the UK’s 50 most influential fundraisers in 2012, 2013 and 2014 and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by London Metropolitan University in 2020. Alongside leading Arts Emergency, Neil mentors campaigners and charity leaders and advocates for the importance of equity, culture, and community in a thriving democracy.
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Sahra Warsame
Theatremaker, Producer & Curator
Sahra Warsame (she/her)
Theatremaker, Producer & Curator
London (UK)
Sahra is a multidisciplinary theatre maker whose experimental work spans writing, performance, production, and direction.
A member of this year’s Next Gen Producers cohort, she co-curated Battersea Arts Centre’s celebrated annual Homegrown Festival. Her dynamic practice has flourished across London’s leading venues including Talawa, Young Vic, and the V&A Museum. Her one-act play Whited Sepulchre was recently shortlisted for the Bill Cashmore Award in collaboration with Lyric Hammersmith.
Credits +
Presented by Dance Umbrella in partnership with Battersea Arts Centre
- Brenda Emmanus OBE
Facilitator - Dr Laura Griffiths, Neil Griffiths, Dr Rachel Krische, Sahra Warsame
Panelists - Vinessa Brant, Rebekah Spencer
BSL Interpreters - Andy Downie
Technical Director - Henry Curtis
Videographer and Editor
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