Dutch choreographer and contemporary teacher Didy Veldman, born in 1967, was trained in numerous techniques at the Scapino Academy in Amsterdam. Following her training she went on to dance with Scapino Ballet, Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève and Britain's Rambert Dance Company. She worked with international choreographers such as Jiří Kylián, Mats Ek, Ohad Naharin, Christopher Bruce and many others.
In 1992, Veldman started her own dance company called Alias with Guilherme Botelho. The first work En Manque was performed to great acclaim in London, Glasgow, Zurich and Lausanne. The production also won two major choreographic awards: the Dance Exchange International 1993 and the Prix romand des spectacles indépendants 1994. Veldman left Alias after an invitation by Christopher Bruce to join Rambert Dance Company in 1994.
Whilst being a dancer with Rambert Dance Company, Veldman created three works for the repertory. She received a grant from the Choo-San Goh & H. Robert Magee Foundation for her third production with Rambert. This production also won the Lindbury Prize for Stage Design created by Miriam Buether.
Veldman left Rambert in 2000 to concentrate on her choreographic career. She has created a big variety of works, full evening story telling works with symphony orchestra and smaller creations as part of a triple bill. She has worked for companies all over the world like; Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal, Portugal's Ballet Gulbenkian, Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet of New York, United Kingdom's Rambert Dance Company, Sweden's Cullberg Ballet, Royal New Zealand Ballet, Ballet Bern, Komische Oper Berlin, Netherlands' Introdans and Iceland Dance Company amongst others.
Since 2000 she has built up a relationship with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, which she is immensely grateful for. This has allowed her to deepen her choreographic work together with their wonderful dancers. She has worked with the company on 8 separate occasions.
Veldman's projects for 2015/2016 will be working on the Opera Tristan & Isolde for the Longborough Festival, in the United Kingdom, as well as restaging Les Noces for Balé da Cidade de São Paulo, Brazil, a work she created for Ballet de Genève in 2013. Moreover, Rambert Dance Company, Cedarlake from New York and Ballet Lucerne have all commissioned Veldman to create new works.
Veldman also teaches contemporary classes and choreographic workshops, she was invited to teach at the Prix de Lausanne 2010 and 2011. The Prix has used her choreography for the 2012 and 2013 competition.
She has taught classes at the National Ballet School in Amsterdam, The Royal Ballet School in London, Codarts in Rotterdam, McDonald College in Sydney and Rambert School of London amongst others. She was also invited in 2010 and 2013 as a Guest Artist Choreographer at Jacob’s Pillow in New York for their Contemporary Program.
