Jennifer Essex works as a choreographer, dancer, and teacher on projects across the UK and internationally. Her choreography for award winning visual artist Corin Sworn was shown at the Whitechapel Gallery as part of the Max Mara Art Prize for Women. She has developed movement for innovative projects including a stop-motion film for French fashion house Hermes, an interactive video with the award-winning team from Studio Murmur, and a “choreophonic prosthetic” with high tech designer Di Mainstone. This summer, her new work, REPLICAS, will premiere at the Stockton International Riverside Festival. Jennifer has performed in the feature films Anna Karenina and Les Miserables and in adverts for Hermes and Honda as well as in works by choreographers including Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Liam Steel, and Luca Silvestrini. www.jenniferessex.com

Space Rebel Princess

A young princess dreams of becoming an astronaut, but her parents have more aristocratic goals for her. With the help of the audience she must break free of the fears and preconceptions holding her back, and boldly go where no princess has gone before! Rebel Space Princess will be for audiences 4-9 years old with lots of opportunity for the children to get involved, helping the princess to achieve her mission as she battles against the strict rules of her upbringing. The performance is inspired by Helen Sharman, “The girl from Mars who went to the stars”. Helen was the first person from the UK to travel into space. She won a competition advertised on the radio while she was working as a chemist at the Mars factory. The performance seeks to empower young people to follow their dreams and also to inspire in them a love of science.