Akram Khan, MBE

Akram Khan, MBE is a dancer and choreographer with a background in classical kathak training and contemporary dance. Born in Wimbledon, London, he began dancing and trained in the classical South Asian dance form of Kathak at the age of seven.

His stage career began in 1984 and in August 2000, he launched the Akram Khan Company.

With dancing, power and speed are just part of it. It's so much about control. It's one of the most important parts. I think dancers are the gods of the athletes, but they're never recognised for it. Because dance is so eternal, it's so much more sophisticated than athletics. You can't put a gold medal on a dancer, because each is unique, each is individual.

He has created a substantial body of critically acclaimed work that ranges from classical and modern solos to artist-to-artist collaborations and company productions. His Company has a major international presence and enjoys busy tours that reach out to many cultures and peoples across the globe.

Contemporary dance has two elements to it, like all dance forms. You have the pure elements, the abstract elements—structure, bodies, science. And you have the narrative, the more literal. What I love about contemporary dance is that it gives you the space to interpret the story yourself, all you have to do is suggest something. And this I love: the audience will not truly know what certain visual symbols represent. But each person will have their own interpretation. In a sense that’s what I find very special about contemporary dance: you have the possibility to imagine what it is for you, personally.

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