Christopher Bruce (1945-). British dancer, choreographer and director
Christopher Bruce was born in Leicester in 1945. He trained at the Ballet Rambert School and subsequently joined Ballet Rambert in 1963, where he was acclaimed as one of the most gifted performers of his generation. His interest in choreography developed early in his career, as he explored classical, contemporary and popular dance. While he was training, Ballet Rambert was principally a classical company, but after 1966 moved in a new direction towards modern dance. Bruce emerged as a leading dancer and, a few years later, as Rambert’s foremost choreographer. He is recognised as the last major choreographer to have been nurtured by Marie Rambert. He created many works for the company, including Ancient Voices of Children, Cruel Garden, Ghost Dances, Rooster and Sergeant Early’s Dream.
Christopher Bruce took up the position of artistic director of Rambert Dance Company 1994 and over the first few months built up a company of 25 dancers: some former members of Rambert, some dancers from other companies that he wished to continue working with, and some new to his style of working. Their mixed backgrounds in classical and contemporary dance allowed them to perform a wide range of work. Bruce invited internationally recognized choreographers such as Merce Cunningham, Twyla Tharp and Siobhan Davies to produce works for the company as well as providing opportunities for young choreographers, including Jeremy James and Wayne McGregor, to create new works for Rambert. He would remain artistic director until 2002. His son, Mark Bruce, is also a choreographer.