Smikle Dance Studio

Smikle Dance Studio is a creative movement and contemporary dance studio founded by professional dancer and teacher Lee Smikle. Based at 5 Kings Mews in Hove, it's an independent, artist-led space offering classes for everyone from young children through to adults. The studio welcomes complete beginners as well as experienced dancers, with a philosophy centred on creativity, confidence-building, and nurturing individuality.

Lee Smikle trained at the prestigious Rambert School of Ballet & Contemporary Dance and spent nearly a decade as a performer and rehearsal director with Matthew Bourne's New Adventures, touring globally in iconic productions. In 2007 he transitioned to teaching and mentoring, working as Creative & Pedagogy Lead at Trinity Laban's Centre for Advanced Training (CAT) and The Place's CAT program. He founded Shoreditch Youth Dance Company (SYD) in 2010 at RichMix in East London—groundbreaking for treating young dancers as professionals and future leaders rather than simply youth performers. After relocating to Brighton in 2017, he rebranded SYD as Smikle Youth Dance and in 2020 opened Smikle Dance Studio to expand his creative work while engaging the local community. He also created Free to Fall, one of the first dance/movement scratch nights in London, working with hundreds of artists across London, Brazil and Sweden.

The studio offers kids' creative movement (ages 5–11), contemporary dance (ages 7+), ballet and barre, creative academies, performance companies, and boys' classes. All kids' contemporary classes mix free movement and guided play with technique, alignment and strength work. New students with prior dance experience are placed in faster-paced classes to suit their level. The studio runs experience days, a summer school, and the Origins Dance Festival.

For adults, Smikle offers contemporary dance and ballet classes across five levels: Beginners, Improvers, General, Intermediate and Advanced. Classes focus on foundational techniques and confidence for newcomers, advancing to performance quality and complex choreography for experienced dancers. Adult students also have access to the Adult Dance Performance Project 2026. The studio provides a changing room, toilet and reception area. Students must wear comfortable clothing such as leggings, sportswear or tracksuit bottoms; no shoes are allowed on the dance floor except ballet shoes, and socks must be checked with the teacher first.

Associate Artist and Resident Choreographer Natalie Ayton, a Brighton native trained at Rambert School and London Contemporary Dance School, has been an integral member of the Smikle team since 2010. She has performed with companies including Gecko Theatre, Matthew Bourne's New Adventures, Wayne McGregor Company, Retina Dance and Candoco Dance Company, and has created innovative choreographic works with the studio's students. She also lectures at IC Theatre in Brighton.

A welcoming, creative environment focused on contemporary dance and movement. Kids' classes mix free movement and guided play with technique, alignment and strength work; adult classes are structured by experience level from Beginners through Advanced, with clear pacing and technique focus. New students should bring comfortable clothing and water; ask the teacher about sock rules before class.

Founded and led by Lee Smikle, a graduate of Rambert School of Ballet & Contemporary Dance who performed with Matthew Bourne's New Adventures and taught at Trinity Laban and The Place before establishing the studio. Associate Artist and Resident Choreographer Natalie Ayton, trained at Rambert and London Contemporary Dance School, has worked with companies including Wayne McGregor Company, Candoco Dance Company and Gecko Theatre, and has been creating choreographic works with Smikle students since 2010.

Designed for complete beginners; kids' creative movement needs no prior experience, and adult Beginner classes focus on foundational techniques and building confidence.