Solene Weinachter

Name: Solene Weinachter
Age: 24
Born: Paris
Lived in Scotland: Two years

Solene Weinachter, 24, came to Scotland in 2007 and is a professional dancer at Scottish Dance Theatre (SDT), Scotland's national contemporary dance company and part of Dundee Rep Theatre.

She was born outside Paris but grew up in Lyon, where she attended the Conservatoire National Régional de Lyon, the regional music, dance and theatre academy.

Solene kept up her dance training while completing a Choreography Diploma but was unsure whether to commit to a full-time dance career until she visited a friend in London who was attending the London Contemporary Dance School.

"I discovered that you could do a degree in being a dancer, so auditioned for London Contemporary Dance School to do a three-year BA Honours degree after finishing university in France," she explains.

After graduating from London Contemporary Dance School in 2007, Solene came to Dundee to complete a further one-year postgraduate diploma in contemporary dance and performance as an apprentice at SDT.

"The apprenticeship with SDT was quite unexpected," she says. "I wasn't so sure what I wanted to do, but I learned so much from the experience. To digest all my training and put it into practice with fantastic professionals was incredible."

Solene was offered a full-time post and is now one of nine professional dancers and two apprentice dancers at SDT, which aims to create dance that is moving, thought provoking and has resonance in people’s lives.

The company tours throughout the UK and internationally, performing work by SDT's Artistic Director, Janet Smith - one of the most respected and established dance producers in Britain today - and by internationally celebrated and emerging choreographers.

"To have been a student and then to become professional is a very big step and involves a different frame of mind," Solene explains. "The biggest thing I've learned is to be on the ball with what you're doing, to be efficient. The discipline of training every day really builds and refines your skills. I also learn from my colleagues, because everyone is so different.

"I think it's the richness of it that I enjoy most - the endless source of diamonds you find every day. It can be the way somebody is doing something; what a teacher is going to say or a choreographer coming here with inspiring ideas. There's always something to keep you captivated."
 
Solene is also impressed by Dundee's creative pedigree.

"Dundee to me has a very high concentration of great people: lots of artists and very talented people who are really dedicated to what they do. It's a beautiful landscape and a hectic life - it's very special."

SDT was established in 1986 and is funded by the Scottish Arts Council, Dundee City Council, the National Lottery and Scotland and Europe.

Related Links

• Rocco Vermijs
• Scottish Dance Theatre