Deborah Baddoo MBE
Deborah trained at the University of Surrey and went on to gain an MA in Performance Arts at Middlesex University.In 2006 she was awarded a Fellowship of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA) and in 2010 she was awarded an MBE for Services to Dance.
Following on from her early career as a dancer and choreographer, Deborah became Senior Lecturer in Dance at Hackney Community College, London, where she established the first nationally accredited full-time Dance Foundation Course before moving on to work as a Youth Arts Development Officer at the Cockpit Theatre, London.
Deborah also continued developing work in Hackney and became a co-founder of the pioneering arts centre and organisation, Pyramid Arts Development, which supported music and dance activities, and was a catalyst and springboard for the careers of literally hundreds of artists, some of whom are now recognised nationally and internationally. The dance studio at Pyramid was a key resource for the UK’s emerging Black dance scene.
While still at Pyramid, Deborah set up her own company State of Emergency, which was incorporated in 1986 and is still thriving today.
In the early 1990s she also lent her support to ADAD (The Association of Dance of the African Diaspora) spending two years as its co-ordinator, developing its activities.
During the next ten years State of Emergency went from strength to strength receiving critical acclaim for its pioneering Mission programme of activities- showcases, tours, festivals and other events, aiming to change the cultural landscape of dance in the UK.
Deborah continues to strive for a wider recognition of the work of Black dancers and choreographers. Following State of Emergency’s commissioned report Altered States into the Black dance Sector in 2010, responded to the sectors needs set up the Strategic Alliance for Black Dance – a national network of key Black dance organisations, individual choreographers and artists and the establishment of a long awaited national archive for Black dance (Black Dance Archives), working in partnership with the National Resource Centre for Dance with support from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
State of Emergency are also developing international profile with high quality touring work, most notably their dance theatre show Desert Crossings, highly reviewed by The Times, the Guardian and The Stage newspapers.
