IN|FORM | Riley Baldwin
Image: Eden Reville
Photographer: Pointe Shoot Love
Born and raised in Bundaberg, I commenced dancing locally at the age of seven. First was tap, then jazz, acrobatics and lastly classical ballet by the time I was 10. Throughout these nine years my passion for movement never dulled, and my full-time training therefore began at the Australian Dance Performance Institute in 2009. Upon my graduation in Brisbane I successfully auditioned for the New Zealand School of Dance (NZSD) where I majored in contemporary disciplines from 2011-2013.
During my three years of study in Wellington I performed leading roles in Sydney Dance Company and Australian Dance Theatre repertoire as part of the School’s annual Graduation Seasons, and received guest tutorage from industry professionals such as Antony Hamilton, Craig Bary, Sarah Foster-Sproull and Lina Limosani, whom I worked with professionally in 2014.
My initial infatuation to create began to emerge through NZSD’s 2013 Choreographic Season — an opportunity presented to final-year students to collaboratively compose a series of self-choreographed works in a professional setting, featuring fellow classmates. After such positive remarks from internal and external audiences, the decision to shift my focus to a career in choreography became evident.
Since commencing employment at Classical Coaching Australia in 2016, I can proudly acknowledge that my creative methods have been recognised at numerous events and competitions around the world, including the Youth America Grand Prix Finals in Paris and New York, and the RAD Genée International Ballet Competition (now known as “The Fonteyn”) Finals in Portugal and Hong Kong. Aside from these freelance endeavours, my pursuit to innovate further lead to the establishment of my youth contemporary company - RB Corp. Instruction (RBCI) - in 2018, fortifying my devotion to the craft and creation of contemporary dance. The surfacing of this platform resulted in the debut of the company’s first original work, “The Hive”, in September 2019 with a cast of 51 dancers aged 9-19 collected from as far as rural Queensland and New South Wales.
I also take great pleasure in hosting numerous choreographic intensives all-year round throughout Queensland in more remote locations such as Mackay and Hervey Bay when I’m not quite yet caught in the depths of production preparations. These exclusive offerings enable young dancers to personally discover their own artistic divergence in a passionately-guided environment. They also expose and extract, as they not only help shape and inspire movement generation later featured in the company’s annual works, but simultaneously assist the development of the many aspiring artists involved.
I hold my quality craftsmanship and distinctive integrity very close to me, and like to consider these as reasons why my body of work constantly gains new attention. For this, I am truly grateful. RBCI itself is currently preparing for its second season, “Majors & Minors”, set to premiere in 2020 with yet another diverse cast of 42 sourced from local, interstate and international locations including Townsville, Bundaberg, Richmond Hill, Chilcotts Grass, New Zealand and many more.