Pupils from Dundee Secondary Schools performed at the Dundee Secondary School’s Dance Festival (15th March) which was led by Active School coordinators and Physical Education Teachers.
The Dance Festival is part of Dundee’s Schools Sports Association which aims to get as many Secondary pupils involved in Dance clubs and events as possible and create ways to promote pathways to participate, choreograph, organise events, volunteer and Lead in Dance.
This exciting event had 111 secondary school pupils from across Dundee showcasing their wonderful and creative talents in Street, Contemporary and Open categories, with choreography created by the school pupils themselves as well as some of our dance leaders, ex pupils and assistance from the school staff. The Dance Festival provides an opportunity for parents, guardians, friends and dance lovers to share in the dance experience.
Preparation for this event started in October 2021, with a number of 4th and 5th year pupils from Dundee Secondary Schools attending a week-long Dance Leaders Level 5 qualification (Sports Leaders UK) which has given them the confidence to choreographer and lead dance in their schools.
James Fenna, Active Schools Manager at Leisure & Culture Dundee said
“Becoming a Dance Leader is a fantastic role. Not only is it a great way to develop new skills, build confidence and meet like-minded people, but the programme helps youngsters develop as leaders by influencing and reflecting the views of other young people. We encourage our Young Leaders to motivate and inspire others to get into sport and physical activity, helping shape decisions to ensure youngsters have the best possible experience across Dundee.”
Gillian Pack, Active Schools Coordinator & Freelance Dance Teacher
“The Dundee Secondary Schools Dance Festival has developed into such an amazing event over the years. It’s not only a great celebration of dance and a chance for pupils to show off their dance skills and choreography, but it is also a great way to bring pupils and schools together, focusing on; teamwork, creativity and engaging as much participation as possible throughout our secondary schools. Whether this is performing, leading dance groups, choreographing, editing music, or selling programmes, everyone contributes in their own way. It’s a great way for pupils to meet new people, step out of their comfort zone and grow in confidence. The teams all work so hard in the lead up to this event and the standard of dance and choreography is absolutely incredible across all three categories. I have judged at this competition before and the pupils do not make this an easy task, I am always blown away by the talent on that stage! It was wonderful to have some of our primary pupils as well as students from the Scottish School of Contemporary Dance as guest performers.
It’s always very inspiring for our younger pupils to watch the high schools, and for our secondary pupils to watch the college students, I’m sure some of them would love to go on to train in dance when they leave school. The pupils were buzzing to be back up there on stage which was wonderful to see, and the audience did a great job at cheering them all on. Well done to all of the young people taking part and to all of the teachers, staff in schools and to the family and friends who came along to support them. It’s great to have events like this to look forward to again and we are all looking forward to next years festival already!”
Kieran Brown, from Scottish Dance Theatre (one of our judges)
"It was so lovely to see the dancers team work, their passion for dance and the support they have for one another. It was really inspiring. I thought the street section was particularly strong, really nuanced physicality and amazing style and groove. It was a really high level. It felt like a really supportive space for them all to share their work. There’s obviously a lot of work going in to support them to get to that place."
Guests at this years event included, Rosebank Primary School, Rowantree Primary School, Alice Newlands (World Champion Highland Dance who attends St Peter and Pauls RC Primary School) and The Scottish School of Contemporary Dance. Also invited along to judge at this years event was Winifred Jamieson, Kieran Brown and Lindsey Jones.
All dance groups performed to a very high standard, with St John’s school winning the Contemporary category, St Pauls school winning the Open Category and St John’s school winning the Street category.
