Arlene Phillips
22 May 1943
British
Choreographer
1976–present
- Theatre choreographer
- director
- television personality
- television judge
- former dancer
Angus Ion (1985–present)
For many years, she was most noted as the choreographer of numerous West End and Broadway musicals, films, and television shows, but she later achieved mainstream fame as a judge on television talent shows including Strictly Come Dancing and So You Think You Can Dance.
Early life[edit]
Phillips was born on 22 May 1943 in Prestwich, Lancashire.[2] She has a brother, Ian and a sister, Karen. She attended Broughton Preparatory School, Cheetham Hill, Manchester;[3] Beaver Road Primary School, Didsbury;[3] and Manchester Central High School for Girls[3] after passing the eleven plus exam.[3] When Phillips was 15, her mother, who had been suffering from leukaemia, died aged 43 just before Phillips was due to take her exams.[3]
Phillips originally wanted to be a ballet dancer and began dance classes at the age of three, studying ballet and tap dance at the Muriel Tweedy School in Manchester after leaving school at 16.[3] Her mother had always expressed a desire to dance, which inspired Phillips into pursuing dance professionally.[3]
Professional career[edit]
Phillips is internationally renowned as a choreographer and director of West End and Broadway musicals, but has many other professional credits.[3] In her mid-teens, Phillips moved to London.[4] where she developed her own style of jazz dance, strongly influenced by American Modern Jazz dance popular in London at that time.[4] She went on to teach her style of jazz dance at The Dance Centre, later named Pineapple Dance Studios in Covent Garden,[4] and at the Italia Conti Stage School,[4] so establishing herself as a successful teacher and choreographer.[4]
Phillips was assistant choreographer on the 1982 film Annie[4] and the promotional video for the Duran Duran song The Wild Boys, named Best British Video at the 1985 BRIT Awards.[4] In the summer of 1996, she was stage director on the opening run of Michael Flatley's Irish dance show, Lord of the Dance at Dublin's Point Theatre.[5]
Internationally, Phillips is most noted as a jazz and musical theatre choreographer, having worked on some of the biggest-selling musicals in West End and Broadway theatre, and a number of successful films.
Phillips choreographed the 2002 Commonwealth Games opening and closing ceremonies [4] alongside fellow Mancunian, David Zolkwer.[6]
From 2004 to 2008, she was a judge on the BBC One show Strictly Come Dancing,[4] and commented on the acts in Eurovision: Your Country Needs You for the BBC in 2009.[4] In 2008, she created, produced, and choreographed the ITV television serial Britannia High.[4]
Following Phillips's appearance on Your Country Needs You, she choreographed the performance of the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009.[7] She went on to choreograph Engelbert Humperdinck's performance of the UK entry in the 2012 contest in Baku.[8]
In March 2013, Arlene appeared on Let's Dance For Comic Relief in the Dance Judge Panel with Greg James and Lee Mack.[9]
Honours[edit]
Phillips was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2001 Birthday Honours and in 2006 she received a Carl Alan Award for Outstanding Services made by the International Dance Teachers Association.[18]
Phillips was made Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2013 New Year Honours for services to dance and charity,[19] and Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2021 Birthday Honours for services to dance and charity.[20][21]
Personal life[edit]
Phillips has been in a relationship with Angus Ion, a set builder, since 1985. The couple first met on the set of the music video for the Freddie Mercury song "I Was Born to Love You".[10]
Alana Dancing Star books[edit]
In 2010, Phillips wrote a series of children's fiction books. Alana Dancing Star is a series of six books, in which the title character explores different genres of dance. The series covers ballroom dance, samba, hip-hop, Bollywood, Broadway, and tango. In summer 2011, one of the books, Viennese Waltz, was selected to be part of Richard and Judy's Summer Children's Reading List.[3]
Awards and nominations[edit]
She is a three-time Olivier Award nominee for Best Theatre Choreographer, being nominated in 1994 and 1999, finally winning in 2024. Phillips also won the 2023 Special Recognition award alongside Derek Jacobi.[5][24]
She won the WhatsOnStage Award for Best Choreography in 2023 for Grease at the Dominion Theatre.[25]
She won her first Oliver Award for her work on Guys and Dolls at the Bridge Theatre in 2023, for which she received a standing ovation during the ceremony.