From the London 2012 Olympic Closing Ceremony to the 2026 Milano Winter Olympics, Nathan Clarke has spent decades at the top of the commercial entertainment industry. This past May, he joined IAB Barcelona’s graduating Commercial Dance students to create one final, defining piece for Momentos 2026 – before they leave.
Nathan Clarke is one of the most recognisable names in commercial choreography. Originally from Australia, he built the early part of his career in London – moving through the ranks from commercial dancer to assistant choreographer to associate director – before establishing himself as one of the industry’s most looked-for creative directors. His credits span television, live touring, and large-scale broadcast events at the very highest level: Creative Director and Choreographer for The Voice UK on BBC One for four consecutive years, Associate Director and Lead Choreographer for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Closing Ceremonies – where he created performances for Rihanna, Coldplay, Jay-Z, The Spice Girls, Queen, and Kate Moss – and choreographer for tours with Take That, Robbie Williams, Kylie Minogue, Rita Ora, and Zara Larsson, among many others.
Now based in Madrid, Nathan continues to work internationally, directing concerts with Andrea Bocelli in Italy, a residency show in Las Vegas, and projects across Germany and France. Most recently, he was part of the creative team for the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics. This past May, he joined IAB Barcelona to choreograph the graduation piece for CD6 as part of Momentos 2026, IAB’s annual end-of-year showcase.
Watch Me Burn: The Concept Behind the Graduation Piece
The piece Nathan created for CD6 is called Watch Me Burn and the title is deliberately defiant. “These girls are ready to leave,” he says. “They’re going to graduate and go out into the real world. I want them to feel like: watch me, I’m coming.“
Watch Me Burn is a modern blend of commercial styles built around a central theme: the duality of femininity and masculinity within a woman, and the power that lives in moving between the two. The piece is set to Watch Me Burn by Michele Marrone and Whisper by Able Hearto.
Visually, the staging is striking by design. Black textured layered fabrics, structured men’s jackets, wet hair – a deliberately bold aesthetic that asks the dancers to find and inhabit both sides of themselves on stage. “At the end of the day, I just wanted to create a strong dance piece where they felt empowered and incredible,” Nathan says. “Hopefully we’ve achieved that.“
From London to Las Vegas: A Career Built on Letting Go
One of the most revealing things Nathan shares about his work is the emotional cost of finishing a project. For someone who moves from show to show, city to city, the moment a production opens is also the moment he has to walk away from it.
“When you make a show and then you leave – your job is done, the show is open – you get a real sadness,” he admits. “But it comes from pride in the team that are going to make it run. You have to learn when to let go and let it do its thing.“
It’s a discipline that comes with experience, and one that is especially hard when the work is deeply personal. As a creative director, he explains, the project originates entirely from his own imagination, his own vision, his own creative investment – which makes releasing it all the more difficult.
Choreographing the 2026 Milano Winter Olympics: A Career Highlight
When asked which recent project has made him most proud, Nathan doesn’t hesitate. Earlier this year, he was part of the creative team for the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, working alongside a celebrated Italian ice skater he had collaborated with before, on a project that explored the intersection of athleticism and performance.
“It was something about encouraging new talent and how the journey between athlete and entertainment comes together,” he says. “It was a great team from day one. And when it finished: wow, we did that.“
It also speaks to another side of Nathan’s career that sets him apart in the commercial dance world: his reputation as one of Europe’s most respected ice choreographers, with credits spanning Opera on Ice, ITV’s Dancing on Ice, and Paddington Bear on Ice.
Working with Chanel: How Eurovision Led to a Two-Year Collaboration
Nathan’s move to Madrid brought an unexpected early opportunity. Shortly after arriving, he watched Eurovision and was struck by the Spanish contestant Chanel. His partner at the time turned to him and said: this is who you need to work with in Spain.
Not long after, he received a call from a producer – and it was, indeed, Chanel. “It was a bit of fate,” he says. “Welcome to Spain.“
The collaboration lasted close to two years, encompassing two Spanish tours, a return to Eurovision with a new version of SloMo, and a final event: the Coca-Cola Music Awards – for which Nathan created an entire burlesque-style show. “That was pretty special,” he says simply.
Nathan Clarke's Advice for Graduating Commercial Dancers
His advice to the sixteen students he spent weeks working with in May is precise and hard-won.
“Maintain your integrity,” he says first. “What you’ve learned over three years, how you’ve built yourself – maintain that.” But in the same breath, he adds the essential counterweight: “Be open to influence.“
In the commercial dance world, he explains, the performers who sustain long careers are rarely the most technically perfect – they are the ones who absorb everything around them. Art, other dancers, fashion, media, culture. “Be a sponge,” he says. “That’s the best thing you can possibly do for longevity.“
It’s advice that applies far beyond graduation, Nathan himself still gets nervous on the first day of every new job. “I’m quite a reserved person for this industry,” he admits. “I get super nervous, first day of school, every single time.” What his training in Australia gave him, and what he now passes on, is not the absence of nerves but the readiness to walk in anyway.
Nathan Clarke is a Creative Director and Choreographer based in Madrid. Watch Me Burn, choreographed by Nathan Clarke with Dance Captain Martta Rautio, was performed by IAB Barcelona’s graduating Commercial Dance cohort CD6 as part of Momentos 2026 in May 2026.
Interview by Zeb Díaz
Article by Sara Barbieri
Videography by Roger Bayerri
