10 years of toil pay off

TWELVE years ago, dancer Kuik Swee Boon returned to Singapore after a five-year stint dancing for the prestigious Compania Nacional de Danza in Spain, one of Europe's top dance companies. Having been a part of the rich contemporary scene in Spain, he was eager to see contemporary dance develop in Singapore as well.

He discussed his plans with his former colleagues at Singapore Dance Theatre (SDT), where he performed full-time from 1991 to 2002. But his ex-colleagues were sceptical. "They said: 'Contemporary dance? Isn't that just for smart people? It's too complex and perplexing for ordinary people, no?' " he recalled.

Kuik brushed off their scepticism and set up T.H.E. (The Human Expression) Dance Company in 2008. The following year, he launched the dance festival, curating pieces by local companies such as SDT, Maya Dance Theatre, Frontier Danceland and, of course, T.H.E. for a one-week festival.