Celebrating 25 Years of Covent Garden Dance Company

As Covent Garden Dance Company marks a major milestone, we celebrate its journey at Hatch House, the people who have supported its development and Harlequin Floors' longstanding partnership with the company.

What began as an intimate performance for just 120 people, featuring three performances by dancers from The Royal Ballet, has grown into an established annual event. Today, around 1,350 people attend across the weekend to enjoy Ballet Under the Stars, a programme of 14 pieces.

Matt Brady, Director of Covent Garden Dance Company, reflects:

“I'm most proud of the development of starting from nothing and bringing it to this. We've been really lucky to have amazing people see what we wanted to do and help us grow it.”

For Brady, the company's development has been shaped by “a tapestry of incredible people who have helped, nurtured, forgiven, and supported” its journey, with Harlequin among those longstanding supporters.

Harlequin has supported performances at Hatch House for many years, helping ensure professional dancers have a performance surface they can trust.

The combination of Harlequin Cascade and Harlequin Liberty provides dancers with the confidence, grip and protection they need, particularly within the challenges of an outdoor, raised stage. Matt highlights: “As an artist, they need to feel that confidence that they're going to grip, they're going to get what they need out of that floor, and it's going to protect their bodies.”

After 25 years, Covent Garden Dance Company is preparing for its next chapter at Charlotte's Lake, a new performance venue featuring a 1,500-square-metre lake and an amphitheatre seating around 400 people.

Brady describes Hatch House as the company's “ancestral home”, having provided the space for the company to develop its identity and ethos since 2010.

The move will create new opportunities to support emerging choreographers and dancers, and Harlequin Floors will continue to be part of the journey. For Brady, continuing the partnership was an important part of planning the new venue:

“My first port of call when developing Charlotte's Lake and talking to our supporters was with Harlequin to say, can we continue? Because I don't want to go anywhere else.”

As Covent Garden Dance Company prepares to leave Hatch House and begin its next chapter at Charlotte’s Lake, the relationships built over the years will continue to play an important part in its future.

Harlequin Floors is proud to continue its longstanding partnership with Covent Garden Dance Company, supporting the dancers and artists who take to the stage and remaining part of the company’s journey as it moves into its new home.