Sunday 12 July at Sadler’s Wells will see over 350 young people taking part in Step LIVE! 2015, the culmination of the Step into Dance year and a exhilarating and exciting evening of youth dance. Free foyer events start from 4.30pm with Levantes Dance Theatre, a street dance demonstration and freestyle circle, before the show starts at 6.30pm. Step into Dance groups audition to be part of Step LIVE!, which offers the most dedicated and hard-working dancers the chance to perform on a professional stage.
2015 marks a year of two special Step projects that celebrate the calibre of Step teachers, the power that inclusive dance can bring and to inspire students across the schools that the teachers work with. From 26-30 May a five day intensive was delivered by James Wilton and Natasha Gilmore, culminating in two pieces that will be performed at Step LIVE! 2015.
Natasha Gilmore is Artistic Director of international touring company Barrowland Ballet, which is based in Glasgow. She has worked with an SEN group made up of different schools, and four Step teachers. James Wilton, international contemporary dance choreographer, based in Cornwall, has worked with eight Step teachers, who all specialise in different dance styles. Putting Step teachers in the spotlight is an integral part of the project, celebrating their hard work through Step and the Jack Petchey Foundation.
Both choreographers approached the project with an open mind, uncertain as to what their different groups could achieve, but ready to pull out their potential and challenge their minds and bodies. When working with an inclusive group of dancers, with different learning and physical needs it is usually best to have a rough idea of the creative process before beginning, but this does not mean choreography cannot be a collaborative experience.