Last summer, we awarded Street Dance Productions £3,100 to run a series of dance workshops during the summer holidays and into the autumn. The sessions culminated in a performance at the Gordon Craig Theatre in Stevenage in November.
We caught up with Street Dance Productions Director Eric John to find out how the programme went.
Q. Eric, looking back on the 2016 Dancemania programme – would you say it was a success?
A. YES! It was brilliant fun and incredibly rewarding. But most importantly the kids loved it – we had many in tears when the sessions were over.
Q. Who attended these dance classes and how much did they cost?
A. Our Dancemania sessions were open to all Letchworth residents aged between 7 and 17. Thanks to our supporters such as the Heritage Foundation, we were able to offer classes free of charge, which was great and meant more children could attend.
Q. How many children attended and how often did the classes run?
A. We had 50 children register with us. During the summer classes ran twice a week, which dropped to once a week once schools started back in September.
Q. What style of dance was taught?
A. It was a street dance course.
Q. What else did the children learn and what were the wider benefits?
A. Alongside the dancing skills, the project promoted good communication skills, listening, following instructions, teamwork, self-discipline and leadership. It’s great to see the children develop and increase in confidence. It was also nice to bring together young people from all different areas of the town and watch new friendships emerge.
Q. Tell us more about the show in November
A. The show at the Gordon Craig theatre in Stevenage was a lot of fun and really great for the children to be involved in. It featured many different dance groups and a few local schools. There was no pressure on anyone to attend and you could choose to come to the training without appearing in the show. The night was a great success and I’m incredibly proud of all the young people that took part and incredibly thankful to all our volunteers who made it happen.
Q. Will you be running the scheme again?
A. YES! We’ve been running for years now and know how important our classes are. We’re hoping to run them for longer in 2017 – watch this space!
