#FriendsFriday 63 - Malachy Luckie
How are you/have you been involved with Casson & Friends?
I first came across Casson and Friends in 2018 when they were developing Choreocracy at Theatre Deli’s The Old Library where I was an intern whilst studying at Surrey uni. Tim was described to me before we met as ‘the nicest guy in dance’, and he lived up to that expectation (cheesy, I know). I took photos for Choreocracy’s first public sharing as I was making the most of my internship to improve my photography & filming skills, and I sent the company the photos I took afterwards. Tim was the first person to use my photos publicly and credit me for them, which I remember as being a key point in my development which got me to start thinking about photography as a viable side-hustle. Since then, I photographed The Dance We Made at care homes in Suffolk and most recently filmed and photographed their performance at First Light Festival in Lowestoft.
What do you love about dance?
I’ve always been fascinated by dance and movement, it’s something I always came back to at college and university in theory and practice. Before college I had this misconception that dance was just for people who trained professionally since they were 5; however, our college tutors encouraged us to think about dance and movement as an expression of self, and to embrace our individual movement qualities. This helped me to push past the self-erected barrier of thinking ‘this isn’t for me’. Working with Casson and Friends always reminds me how quickly these barriers can be torn down with a bit of encouragement and support, and a whole lot of fun and positivity. In The Dance We Made for example, you can see how much the experience empowers participants when they realise that their words and contributions have helped to create something really special. So, what I love most about dance is once people get past their inhibitions, dance can be extremely accessible to engage with and incredibly empowering.
What song always makes you dance? (We have a Spotify playlist!)
TOOTIMETOOTIMETOOTIME by The 1975 – if you see me sitting still while this song is playing then something’s not right.
Listen to the #FriendsFriday playlist on Spotify
What else are you working on at the moment? (Upcoming performances, exciting projects, holidays!)
I work for the Norfolk and Norwich Festival where I’m currently heading up a project with Blast Theory which will tour around seaside towns in Norfolk this autumn. Otherwise we're working towards NNF's 250th anniversary festival so keep an eye out for programme announcements later this year!
Any links? (Links to your work, your company website, Facebook, Twitter, Soundcloud etc?)
View more of Malachy’s work on his website. or on Instagram - @malachyluckiephotography
Meet more of the Casson & Friends team on Fridays with #FriendsFriday!
