ŻfinMalta National Dance Company, on Thursday, announced the appointment of Matthew William Robinson as its Artistic Director.

Mr Robinson will be leaving his post as Artistic Director of National Dance Company Wales to join ŻfinMalta for its 10th season. He has “a wealth of experience following a distinguished career as a dancer, choreographer, facilitator, rehearsal director and artistic director.”

His choreographic work has moved across the United Kingdom and internationally to venues and festivals in Europe and beyond. Built from the body, the work seeks to translate contradictions and complex emotions, through highly physical choreographic construction.

Collaborating across forms, Mr Robinson is engaged in ongoing and emerging collaborative partnerships in the fields of sound, fashion, theatre, and technology.

He has previously held roles as dancer and rehearsal director for Scottish Dance Theatre, performing work by international choreographers including Sharon Eyal, Damien Jalet, Hofesh Shechter, and Victor Quijada, and he was Artistic Director of Verve from 2016-2021.

In 2021 he was appointed Artistic Director of National Dance Company Wales where he has been developing the interweaving possibilities of the company’s artistic and engagement programmes and interrogating the role of repertory companies, through works for theatre, public space, festivals and immersive contexts.

He is also a graduate of London Contemporary Dance School.

“I am thrilled to begin this new chapter with ŻfinMalta, building on the exceptional work of Paolo Mangiola and the team. I am inspired by the ambition of the company, and excited to step into what is next together,” said Mr Robinson.

He also remarked that, as he embarkes on this journey, he looks forward to collaborating with the artistic ecology of the notion over the coming years, and “to work together to highlight Malta as a vibrant cultural centre within the European landscape of artistic practice.”

The company shared that its present Artistic Director, Paolo Mangiola, will  be leaving the role in July 2024 after a term of seven years.

Mr Mangioa joined ŻfinMalta at the end of its third season and has since led the national company through a period of growth, bringing recognition at a local and international level.

“After seven fulfilling years, I have made the decision to step down from my role. Leadership is also the ability to understand when a cycle is ending and allowing the institution you served to keep developing through new voices and expertise,” he recalled.

During his tenure, Mr Mangiola attracted “some of the most important established and pioneering choreographers working in the international stage,” including Tania Carvalho, Emanuel Gat, Roy Assaf, Rosemary Lee, Sergiu Matis, Riccardo Buscarini, Francesca Pennini, Marco D’Agostin, Mauro Bigonzetti, Ambra Senatore, and Lesley Telsford.