CV – ALAN MARTIN - 2010

Contact. Phone 0151 677 7631

E mail: info@mouseonthemove.co.uk

Web Address: www.mouseonthemove.co.uk

Personal details

Born in Liverpool in 1963, I am single, and have lived on the Wirral for most of my adult life. Until I was 31, I had very limited ability to communicate, until I was provided with electronic speech aids, first by friends, later by the health service, and more recently by the "Access to Work" scheme. I believe that I am, at present, the only dance workshop leader in the world who uses an electronic speech aid.

Educational Qualifications

In my youth, I had limited academic education, in Specialist institutions. Since 1998, I have attended many short courses to fill in some of the gaps in my education, in areas useful to my present life.

• Digital Video Editing. NOCN. 1credit level 1
• Facilitated Communication Training. Bolton Institute. 20 credit. grade A
• DEE. Disability Equality in Education. "Training the Trainer"
• D.A.T.A.Disability Awareness Training Agency. "Training the Trainer"
• "Disabled Artists into Work". CADT and North West DAF. NVQ level3
• "Leading the Way" Workshop leaders course. LIPA. JMU certificate of professional development.
• CLAIT. Computer literacy. IBMC Birkenhead. RSA stage 1

Arts Workshops, Courses and Events attended.

• Xtra ’04 Dance showcase and networking event. Lancaster.
• Cheshire Dance courses. "Bloom" Fresh. Residential. At Ludus. Courses on Artistic practice, and work with community groups. Recognising , celebrating diversity. Advisory sessions and action learning sets.
• BlueEyed Soul, Dance improvisation workshop course.
• "Soundability" Soundbeam training.
• Forum theatre course. Enabling Theatre Co. Hebden Bridge. Augusto Boal.
• "CANDOCO". Dance residency and performance.
• Drake music project, courses, workshops and performances.
• "Tourism for All" training – Merseyside Disability Federation.
• Cheshire Dance – Child & Vulnerable Adult Training (September 2005).
• 2006 - Creative Partnerships Merseyside - "Advanced Skills Creatives" course.

Voluntary Work and Experience from 1995--2004

I have given dance workshops, projects and performances, disability equality presentations and Public speaking engagements.

• I have worked for charities and community groups, such as PHAB, Scope, Stockport Cerebral Palsy society, One Voice, Communication Matters, Barnardos, Merseyside CALL (communication aids lending library).DARE foundation (the RITE project) ACE Oxford. NWDAF. The Greenbank project. Liverpool. The Calderdale involvement project.
• DATA (disability awareness training)
• I have worked in many schools nationwide, including Wirral schools, and schools in Wigan, Oldham, Chester, Liverpool, Halifax and London.
• I have worked for many public and private bodies including the Royal College of Nursing, the NHS, RIBA(Royal Institute of British Architects), NAEP (National Association of Equipment Providers), CAPITA, the DLCC. Social Services Day Centres.

Conferences Attended

I have attended many national conferences.

• RADA Jan 2004 Disability, Training, employment and performance.
• Dancing Differently. Foundation for Community Dance.
• New Beginnings.Unum provident .London.
• NAEP national conferences.

• RCN conferences. Stafford.
• CRT (Community Rehab Teams) conference Liverpool.
• Communication Matters. 12yrs
• E.A.T. Symposium, Liverpool
• Dance Conference, Leicester - 2008

I have attended many more conferences on disability issues and dance, and given presentations and workshops at many of them.

Self Employment

In March 2004, I became self employed. I started my own business, "MOUSE ON THE MOVE" giving Dance workshops, Performances, Presentations and Training across the country including:

• "Colourscape", workshops and performances in Liverpool, Croydon and Bromley and North London. Performance at Clapham Common Festival.
• Wigan Social Services. Hunter Lodge Club House. Dance Workshops and Independence Workshop.
• Wigan Education Service. Mere Oaks school. Dance and Independence.
• Calderdale Parents & Carers Council. Dance workshops.
• Oldham Education Service. Dance workshops.
• Wirral Education Authority. Inclusive Education
• Bolton Institute. Communication Rights.
• Merseyside CALL
• Mere Oaks school. Shooting Stars Club. Dance workshop.
• Warrington Council. Disability Awareness Day. Performance.
• CandLE. At Bolton Institute, and Nottingham Educational Psychology Dept. Communication Rights.
• Stick'n'Step. Wirral Dance and Disability Rights.
• Stockport Cerebral Palsy Society. Dance Workshops.
• BBC3 performance in comedy pilot programme "I’m with Stupid"
• Pyramid Arts Centre – performance as part of Nexus
• Chailey Heritage School, East Sussex
• St Thomas More School, Oxfordshire. Dance, music and movement workshops followed by performance.
• Manchester Metropolitan University Speech and Language Therapist Society. Independence and Communication.
• Chestnut Lodge School, Widnes. Dance Workshops.
• Centre 404, London. Communication training.
• ArtsAatack, Edinburgh. Dance workshops.
• Wirral Family Friends. Equality Training.
• Oldham 1 to 1. Equality training
• IBK Transitions Conference, York - September 2007
• Levens CE Primary School - Dance Workshops. September 2007
• Six Primary schools in Oxfordshire over a two-week period. Oct 2007
• Queen Elizabeth School, Kirby Lonsdale - November 2007.
• Talbot School, Sheffield - December 2007.
• Thera Annual Meeting at Hothorpe Hall - January 2008.
• Performance of "This Chair IS Not Me" with Drake Music at Wellingborough - February 2008.
• Liverpool Hope University 2008.
• Tower View school, Darwen (For Creative Partners East Lancs) -2008
• Keys4Change, Liverpool – Inspirational presentation. - 2008
• St Joseph's Banbury – Dance Workshops. - 2008
• P.A. (Personal Assistant) training for IBK.- 2008
• Elmsbank School, Bury – Dance Workshop – 2008
• Talbot School, Sheffield -2008
• Oldham 1 to 1 – Disability Awareness Training. - 2008
• Riverside College, Halton - Inspirational presentation. 2008
• Chorley – Disability Awareness Training - 2008
• St Giles' School, Croydon in collaboration with EyeMusic – January 2009
• Hollybank Trust, W. Yorks – Dance Project in collaboration with Kirsty Soanes and Stewart Geddes – January 2009
• Commission for Social Care Inspection – Presentation on Communication Issues – February 2009
• Liverpool Hope University – Dance Workshops and Inspirational Talk – February 2009
• Keys4Change, Liverpool – Talk on Independence – March 2009
• SoundItOut, Stratford on Avon – Dance Workshops – March 2009
• Featherstone College, Wakefield – Dance Workshops – March 2009
• Ulverston Victoria High School, Ulverston - Disability Awareness Training - June 2009
• University of Central Lancashire (UCLAN) - Access to Higher Education - June 2009
• Eye Music, Barnsley - School Workshops with Colourscape - June 2009
• CALLUP, Liverpool - Group work - June - Sept 2009
• Eye Music, Wakefield - School Workshops with Colourscape - June 2009
• Colourscape, Rotherham - Dance Performances - June 2009
• Thera, Devon - Dance Workshops- July 2009
• Colourscape, Sutton - Dance performances working with Michèle Lainé -July 2009
• St Ann's, Merton - School Workshops with Colourscape - September 2009
• Colourscape, Clapham Common - Dance Performance with Michèle Lainé - September 2009
• Millwood School, Bury - Dance Workshops - September 2009
• Hope School and Oakfield School, Wigan - March 2010
• MOWLL Liverpool - Dance Workshops - May 2010
• Valence School, Westerham, Kent - Three days of Dance Workshops,culminating in final performance. - June 2010.
• Colourscape at Lydgate School, Holmfirth, Yorkshire - three days of Dance Workshops working with Music Creation Specialist (David Stevens) and culminating in performances - June/July 2010.

AND MANY MORE!

Project Coordination

• Cosmic Celebrations- 12 month workshop package culminating in a performance by workshop participants at Pacific Rd Theatre, Wirral. Funded by Scope Millennium Award grant - £8000
• Seventeen- Choreographed dance piece using sound beam, performed by 3 men (disabled and able-bodied) performed at The Brewery Arts Centre Kendal. Funded by North West Disability Arts Forum - £2000
• Exploration Workshops with 6 able-bodied dancers exploring ways to make myself more integrated within choreography and the issues it brings out both from the environment and the artistically. Funded by Unlimited – £2500
• With funding from Arts Council, I set up and ran an inclusive after-school dance club - June/July 2007.
• In 2008, I was commissioned by the “We Make Manchester” Project (On behalf of Manchester City Council) to work with a newly-formed group of young disabled people to create a dance work around the words “United – City”. The project ran from May to July and culminated with the group (now called DanceForce!) performing the piece at Urbis, Manchester on 13th July.

Dance Showcases

In 2005, I performed in the Leap, "Moving on Merseyside" Festival and "Nexus" at Warrington, Pyramid Art Centre. These both showcased my latest piece, "You and Me", jointly choreographed and performed with Emily Grainger. I wrote the music to accompany this piece.

Music

I write my own computer-generated music, both for pleasure and for use in my Dance. To date, I have compiled 2 CD’s of my work.

Television

In January 2005, I was approached by a casting director working on behalf of the BBC. She was looking for two wheelchair users to take part in a BBC3 Comedy Pilot. Although I did not get the part I auditioned for, they were so impressed that they wrote in an extra character, using a communication aid. "I’m With Stupid" was filmed in February and first shown on 21st March. It stars Mark Benton, Paul Henshall, Ruth Jones and Kevin Davies. The pilot was so well received that BBC3 commissioned a six-part series, which was filmed in February and March and was screened in September/October 2006.

Film and Video Work

• I worked with the Callup Group in Liverpool to help them produce a promotional video/DVD of the work they do.
• A film-maker called Andy Taylor Smith produced a cinema "short", entitled "This Chair is not Me", based on a pivotal moment in my life.
• Thanks to an Arts Council Award, I completed the making of a dance/drama film, entitled "Scenes in a Mirror", with a friend, Laura Haughey. The film was launched at FACT in Liverpool City Centre on 12th April 2010 and will now be going on to film festivals, including the Wirral International Film festival.

Other Major Events

In 2008, I entered a short story called “The Secret” into a competition being run by ISAAC/Communication Matters. I was the UK winner in the adult category and I was invited to a story reading presentation at 10 Downing Street on 23^rd October. I was presented with a certificate by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, The Rt Hon. Alistair Darling!

Future Plans

I am in the process of planning a book which I intend to write about what dance means to me.

In the longer term, I am considering the opportunities for a local Dance Studio.

Alan Martin

April 2010

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