Three photos of Jemma Thomas, the first of her dancing in the studio, arms wide; the second of her stood smiling, hand on hip; the third of her sat in the dance studio with young children grinning and touching her toes

New Artistic Director for Impelo

Llandrindod based charitable organisation Impelo have announced the appointment of Jemma Thomas as their new Artistic Director and joint CEO.

Having danced in Powys since the age of 3, Jemma Thomas brings her wealth of experience as a dance practitioner, facilitator, performer, programmer and choreographer to the post which operates from The Dance Centre in Llandrindod Wells.

For the past 6 years she has been instrumental in developing Impelo's Creative Learning work in schools and Early Years settings across the county, and the development of the in-house dance and health offer in her role as the Impelo Programme Co-ordinator. She has also championed careers for freelance dancers in the area through Y Nyth (The Nest) programme.

Jemma played a large role in the smooth transition from Powys Dance to Impelo years ago, and her dynamism and passion for connecting and changing lives through dance sits at the heart of Impelo's mission. Jemma’s vision is to build a culture where everyone feels the excitement of dance that Impelo offers - just as she did growing up through classes herself at the dance centre and beyond.

Jemma Thomas, incoming Artistic Director of Impelo, said:

“This is a huge and joyful honour, I am so ready to change the world through dance, keeping our participants at the forefront of all we do. I want them to always be reflected in all areas of our work and I want to root Impelo firmly in Powys so we can grow in strength with the help of our communities. I owe it to the kid in me who grew up here, to create positive pathways through the arts for our young people and will be blazingly passionate in doing so. I’m thrilled to be in a position to nurture freelance dance careers in Powys, to build on our great work in education, our project work from babies to older people, and to deliver the best workshop and performance experiences in our county for all our participants. The powerful role dance can play in our physical and mental health is huge and I want to explore this with Impelo’s fun, feisty and heartfelt approach. I look forward to dancing with you all soon!”

Jennifer Owen - Adams, Chair of Trustees for Impelo, said:

“We’re delighted to announce that Jemma Thomas will be taking up the role as Artistic Director and Joint CEO. We value her enthusiasm to take on the job and her ability and drive to build on the incredible range of partnerships Impelo already has with communities, third and statutory sectors and current and future dancers.

Through her leadership on our work with under 5s, our education programmes and network for professional dancers in particular, Jemma has shown her artistic vision and strong commitment to dance as a powerful tool for improving the health, educational and life transforming opportunities for our community. It is these qualities, together with her own understanding and lived experiences of creating artistically ambitious socially engaged dance in Powys, which make her the perfect person to take Impelo forward to the next stage of its evolution”.