ZoieLogic Dance Theatre have received a major boost in their bid to get guys dancing.

The Eastleigh-based dance company, spear-headed by gifted artistic director and choreographer Zoie Golding, is one of 40 organisations across the UK to be awarded £5.3 million from the Arts Council's Elevate fund to support diverse organisations in the arts.

ZoieLogic will use a grant of £147,000 to increase opportunities for men and boys to access dance as participants and audiences, supporting an underrepresented group and targeting those least likely to engage.

They hope to develop their package of male dance development locally, regionally and nationally.

Zoie Golding, Artistic Director, ZoieLogic, said: ‘We are very excited to have been selected for an Elevate award. This support will enable us to expand our reach, providing more opportunities for participants and audiences across the UK.

"This is an amazing opportunity for us to be able to move forward with our aspirations and meet demand for our male dance work. Elevate will enable us to bring together our artistic and strategic vision and impact greatly on the sustainable future of ZoieLogic Dance Theatre."

Zoie, aged 34 from Hedge End, travels across the South, taking her workshops to male-dominated environments such as men's prisons, naval bases and traveller camps, often working with excluded boys and young offenders.

She promises to change lives for the better through dance.

Zoie's interest in male dance choreography began while she was at college 16 years ago. Since then she has worked with Matthew Bourne choreographer James Cousins among thousands of others and had her work seen by audiences of around 30,000.

Zoie was the producer of Global Rock Challenge for 15 years before making the decision to work full time on her own company.

Her latest triumph is Safe, a show set against the backdrop of the building of the Empire State Building. Fresh from a UK tour, it features an industrial set that literally builds with the performance to replicate the building of the iconic NYC skyscraper.

An associate artist at The Point, Zoie also presented her work to appreciative audiences at Eastleigh Unwrapped this summer. Blending narrative contemporary dance theatre, high impact professional stunt work and a custom built iconic car, Ride is the story of three strangers and a special car. Their lives intersect on a strange and exciting journey in Stanley, a customised 1980's Ford Orion.