Royal Academy of Dance

A new home for dance

The Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) has been inspiring the world to dance for over a century. This year, we’re supporting them to look to the future with funding for their new state-of-the-art headquarters in Wandsworth.

Our grant of £200,000 covers most of the costs of building and equipping a studio, which will be used by everyone from toddlers to nonagenarians. The ‘Kusuma Studio’ will feature sprung floors, a piano and high specification sound equipment – perfect for the wide range of dance classes it’ll host, including ballet, contemporary, hip hop and musical theatre.

The RAD supports a global community of more than 400,000 dancers in more than 80 countries.
Over 1,000 people dance in the RAD’s London headquarters each week.
RAD outreach programmes reach over 8,000 people each year in schools across London and Essex.

Welcoming the neighbours

By creating this new building, RAD can open their doors to more people who live locally, providing new cultural resources and opportunities and celebrating the area’s diverse communities.

In term time, the Kusuma Studio will welcome Silver Swans classes that improve wellbeing, movement and balance for people aged over 55 and RADiate classes for young people with special education needs. In the summer, the studio will host summer schools and workshops, including Move to the Musicals for over 55s to improve posture and balance.

The new building also offers space for community engagement events, open days, talent development programming and mentoring. The result will be an arts engagement and outreach programme that has been co-created and co-curated by the RAD and their local community.