Now a highly regarded award-winning company, it's hard to imagine that SDT was created way back in 1986 as a service to Dundee's local community.

The company gradually began to tour further afield and won critical acclaim on a national level. In 1991 the company, then called Dundee Rep Dance Company, won the Digital Award for Dance.

Janet Smith was appointed Artistic Director in June 1997. One of the most inventive, respected and established dance producers in Britain today, Janet's work has been described as "dance about people which speaks straight to the heart of the audience". Under her direction, SDT's size and status has grown and the company's choreography has developed a sophistication and maturity, recognised for its originality, clarity and simplicity.

In 2004, the company unveiled a new £1m dance studio at our home venue, Dundee Rep Theatre. The new studio has transformed working conditions for visiting choreographers and our ten talented dancers. It has also allowed us to extend links with the local community by offering dance classes to all ages and levels.

Scottish Dance Theatre won the Critics' Circle National Dance Award for Outstanding Company Repertoire in 2003 and a Herald Angel Award at the 2005 Edinburgh Fringe for the company's performance of LUXURIA.

In recent years the company has created and performed work by Artistic Director Janet Smith and choreographers including Rui Horta, Didy Veldman, Liz Roche, Carol Brown, Darshan Singh Buller, Victor Quijada, Sean Feldman, Willi Dorner, Uri Ivgi & Johan Greben, Liv Lorent and Jan De Schynkel.

SDT also take on apprentices who join us through the Postgraduate Department of London Contemporary Dance School. While gaining experience with the company, they also study for Postgraduate Diploma and MA qualifications. Auditions are held annually and are open to any student who has completed full-time dance training at a vocational level. Please contact Admissions, LCDS: 0207 121 1117 for an application form. The closing date for applications for next year's Apprentice places will be March 10th 2008, with auditions taking place in London March/April 2008.