Nurturing the Ground…

A Conversation with Jen Wren of Slanjayvah Danza

Based in rural Scotland, Jen Wren is the Artistic Director of Slanjayvah Danza (SD), an international dance theatre company known for blending traditional Scottish and Spanish dance forms with contemporary performance. With a practice rooted in collaboration, cultural exchange, and community connection, Jen’s work often grows slowly and organically — much like the landscapes that inspire it. In this conversation with SD trustee Phil Sanger, she reflects on a year of quiet but meaningful growth: building a new studio home, deepening creative relationships, and nurturing the next chapter of Slanjayvah Danza’s journey.

Phil (PS) – 2024 was a big but quiet year for you. What have been some of its highlights?

Jen (JW) – Yes, it was definitely big, though much of it happened behind the scenes (something no one really wants to see on social media, right?). There was the usual company administration – policies, training, all the things that keep us ticking. But the main reason it wasn’t such a public year was that we were gearing up for a new project. When I start building a new production, I like to take my time with it. 6 Feet, 3 Shoes, for example, developed over several years, and I think that our model of engaging with community from the outset, the care to detail and slowness in the process with artists also, really showed in how audiences connected with it.

PS – What do those slower beginnings look like?

JW – They’re really about focus and life research, really. I spend time learning, researching, and understanding the communities or themes I’m working with. I get a lot of energy from nurturing relationships – everything meaningful in the work grows from that. There’s also the ongoing development of my artistic practice. Dance training might not be daily, but the continuity of learning never really stops.

PS – Do you start then with building partnerships to support projects?

JW – Not exactly, at least not at first. It’s more about reconnecting with the people who are already part of our story. Slanjayvah Danza has evolved through 21 years of international collaboration, though only a few of those connections are local. I really value returning to the social roots the company grew from.  Reminding myself where it all started and re-energising through reflection as much as attention to the now.

PS – What did that look like in practice during 2024?

JW – (Laughs)….  There was a lot going on in 2024.  I visited the crew in Spain to touch base, as always but in the main, I stayed in Scotland.  The biggest milestone there was finally having a home base. We’d been working with the volunteer-led organisation Mòr Art Space for a couple of years on developing a new studio, and this year it finally came to life. I ended up project-managing the refurbishment of an old dairy steading – quite a job! It was a huge commitment, and it's not fully completed.

However, for the first time, Slanjayvah Danza has a regular base. Even mid-renovation, I managed to fit in plenty of training there with one of my artistic mentors, Frank McConnell.

In other directions, SD’s consulting producer and I were busy fundraising for new projects. Some of those have big plans and work around them, and others are smaller and more immediate.  We were awarded funding from Tasgadh, which supported a research project surrounding traditional dance and piping with a focus on Cape Breton music played on highland pipes.  So as the studio still remained quite like a campsite (laughs), there we were, myself, Frank McConnell, Angus Nicolson and Hamis Moore. 

There were also trips to Yorkshire, Leeds, and Copenhagen; workshops with Far North Retreats and Calum MacCrimmon and also a brilliant week of play with Christine Devaney of Curious Seed in partnership with Playwrights Studio Scotland; and visits from international colleagues from Germany and Italy – much easier now that we have a studio to host people.

Oh, and yes, online training at both management and board level, allowing us to keep up to date with the forever-changing landscape of running a charity with good ethics and integrity.

PS – Sounds like a great life.

JW – [Laughs] It’s not as glamorous as it sounds! It’s social at times, but not always. Much of 2024 was about preparing for activities in 2025, designing, developing and planning for all that’s involved in building and creating new programmes and productions.

PS – Can you tell us anything about new projects?

JW – Nope! (laughs).  Only that I’ve been researching and refining ideas for a while, chatting with potential collaborators, and we’re now fundraising to bring collaborators on board. That’s all yer gettin for now!  Ok, I will confirm that we will be working with the brilliant Pat Kinevane. We both had productions at DanceBase during the Edinburgh Fringe in 2019, and we’ve stayed in touch ever since.  He’s coming to the studio soon to explore ideas and dramaturgical arcs with me in an open and playful way as a start.

PS – You mentioned doing some online training. What was that about?

JW – Yes, we took part in disability awareness training with Birds of Paradise and Carbon Literacy training with Jennifer Taillefer. As a neurodiverse-led company, we’re always learning how to make our work more inclusive and accessible. The Birds of Paradise sessions helped us think about better ways to support artists and audiences who face barriers to participation. The carbon literacy training was another eye-opener – since 2022, environmental responsibility has become a vital part of arts practice, and we wanted to embed sustainability meaningfully rather than treat it as a tick-box exercise. Next year, we’ll be bringing in consultants in access and sustainability to help design practical frameworks for the company so we can stay accountable to what we’ve learned.

PS – Working with integrity as always. What were you doing when you felt most creative in 2024?

JW – That’s hard to pinpoint! I have to be active when I’m thinking, or balance myself through being practical.  I did a lot of gardening, creation of crafts with willow, dried flowers, making various types of flower arts, including a huge batch of home-grown and dried confetti.  I know that’s not related to dancing, but it's a part of my work that I’ve never shared, and that connection to nature is really part of my overall practice as an artist. 

Dance-wise, I was having the opportunity to continue bursts of experiences with peers and mentoring artists across all the styles I practice.  Of course, one wishes the balance between that and admin had been tipped the other way.  And to continue dialogues with dancers, musicians, and artists across different cultures and lenses.

PS – So 2024 was about planting the seeds?

JW – Yes – though I’d say it is very much similar to gardening than groundwork. Maybe that’s just me channelling my gardener side (laughs).  Seriously, though, it’s not just about setting up for the next production, but about tending to the soil that nourishes the company itself.