Out of Royston Maldoom´s worldwide dance initiatives many ongoing community projects have been established. many of these have resulted in the emergence of professional local and international dance performers, teachers and choreographers.
To support and enhance the work of these emerging talents for the benifit of themslves, their communities and the wider dance world ongoing and sustained support is needed. This is especially true where the benefits of the work at local level far outweigh the recources available.

Projects such as the 'Adugna Community Dance Initiative' in Ethiopia and the 'Danza de esperanza (Dance of Hope) projects with working children from very poor communities in Lima, Peru need our support today (for more information please see below). Royston urgently needs people who share his philosophy and understand the value of this work to get involved in the funding of such projects.

For donations:
Verein Internationales Jugendtanztheater Duiburg e.V.
Verwendungszweck: Maldoom Project Support
Stadtsparkasse Duisburg
BLZ 350 500 00
Konto 219 00 2201

All donations will go directly to the dancers and projects! Roystons own work is self financing and does not involve funds raised through the verein. The verein in turn works without any administration fees or percentages so tries to keep work to a minimum.

If you like to be acknowledged as a donor or need any receipt of your donation please send your contact information and the sum of your donation to:
office@royston-maldoom.org

As a result of donations received from Roystons public appeals at performances, workshops and lectures in Germany and Europe and income from Roystons royalties from the DVD and film showings of 'Rhythm is it' 20, 000 Euros recently went to Adugna to support three major projects with young people affected by polia and women in rural ares with hiv/Aids, initiated by the dance company and all using dance and theatre as a base for research and delivery.

Sincere thanks are given to all donors!

ETHOPIA: ADUGNA
In 1996 100 Ethiopian street kids performed Royston’s choreography to “Carmina Burana”. None of them had ever experienced contemporary dance or classical music before and assumed they were preparing for a sports event or taking part in kind of fitness training in order to get ready for working. Many of the children had spent much of their lives working and surviving on the streets and were at risk. They also faced comtinuing official harrassment. At the end of the project the kids stood proud and focussed on stage, performing in front of nearly 1000 people (many of them other street kids alongside NGO's, foreign ambassadors and other influential members of the public). Despite official opposition to so many street kids gathering in one place and what was perceived at the time as a potentially subversive action there was a very enthusiastic response from the parents and local communities and NGO's working with childen and families art risk. In order to respond to the demand for continuation Maldoom and his colleagues decided, with Ethiopoian partners and artists to work with 18 of the children and train then as community dance artists, teachers, performers and choreographers. With the support of a local non-government organisation he founded the Adugna Community Dance Initiative, a full tme five year long programme in which the children aged between 12 and 15 years received training in Traditional and Contemporary Dance, as well as in music, theater, languages, Ethiopian culture, health and social studies. Together with Mags Byrne and Tammy McLorg the option for a attainment of modules as part of a dance degree course was offered by Middlesex University, London. Adugna Dance Company has been on tour already within and outside Ethiopia, performing and working with local communities with street kids, the elderly, disabled, and with women and children with hiv/AIDS. Ethiopia is a very poor country and despite the enormous support for their work there is little opportunity for funding to support it and them and tocontinue the work Adugna Dance Company needs constant back up support from individuals and organisations outside the country. In Europe we take it for granted that artists and arts institutions need to b e subsidised, edspecially when their work is of such high social value.


PERU: DANCE OF HOTE
The Project “Dance of Hope” started in November 2003, lead by Royston Maldoom in cooperation with San Marcos Ballet and support of the British Council in Lima, Peru. Socially excluded children and young people from the poorest neighborhoods in Lima have been supported and encouraged through ongoing dance projects. In the first year Maldoom started to work on “Sacre du Printemps” with young people from the area 'Los Olivos', a poor suburb far from the centre of Lima. Due to the support of the British Council the project continued until 2006. Follow up support came from the British choreographer and colleague Tamara McLorg, the composer Barry Ganberg and some other musicians and choreographers from Peru. To guarantee the permanent development of the “Dance of Hope” Project in Lima a constant financial support is needed. Unfortunately the British Council, despite their enthusiasm for the project has temporarily discontinued its work in Peru. The dancers of the San Marcos company who have been trained and mentored to do this work are very poorly paid and receive no extra financial support for the long hours they donate. the communities themselves have no money although parents and local small organisations always give time and practical help in any way they can. All agree t that the projects do a great deal to engender self respect for the participating children and new admiration and understanding from their communities. Parents and schools and organisations concerned with their welfare report a change in behaviour, increased socialisation, less drug taking and involvement with crime. Even without these usual benefits for many of the children it is a chance to play, to have fun and take a break from the arduous work on the streets where they are at constant risk of exploitation.

Many of Royston’s projects resulted in talented dancers and choreographers, young men and women with enormous unrealised and unrecognised potential. Andy, a young man excluded from school in Northern Ireland now assists Royston’s colleague Mags Byrne, and works on projects in Northern Ireland and internationally. Mekbul Jemal and Adissu Demissie are young Ethiopians who started dancing as street kids with Royston in Addis Ababa in 1996 and are now professional dancers working in Ethiopia, Great Britain and other African countries. Junaid Jemal was the youngest member of Adugna and also the youngest ever recipient of The Rolex International Award for his first choreography in Madagscar. Recently he performed his new 45 minute solo damce to enthusiastic acclaim in festivals in France and Bremen, as well as teaching prison projects in the UK.
To make an ongoing cooperation with Royston, and a professional training for the dancers in Addis Abeba possible, we are asking for your financial support.