Category: Competitions

A few months ago it was announced that a couples competition was being organised at the Blackpool Tower ballroom.  This was the first time dancers would have the opportunity to compete here since the last event moved away in 2010, so we were obviously excited at the prospect.

It turns out we weren’t the only ones. In January all seats were sold and an extra 300 shipped in and by the day standing only tickets were being sold, we would be in for a marathon.

The children’s events commenced at 8am, when we entered the ballroom at 2pm, they had already been dancing for six hours. The place was packed, everyone excited and the atmosphere amazing. The adult dancers had been advised that due to huge entries they wouldn’t start until 8pm. The first sequence event was at 9.19pm with the prize presentation taking place, as per timetable, at 12.20am.

During that time Stuart and Andrea secured second place in both the Senior Modern Sequence  Senior Classical Sequence Grand Prix events. These were hard fought competitions and to secure two second places was a brilliant achievement.

In the social modern sequence there were three rounds. Chris and Allison achieved a well deserved recall to the semi final.  Neil and Carla came fourth and Andrew and Dawn sixth.

In the over 35yrs Classical Sequence, Neil and Carla came second and Andrew and Dawn third.

Everyone danced above their normal level, inspired by the amazing setting and history of the occasion.  It was a true first that everyone will remember being there for.

I’m sure there were lots of very tired people on Monday (and probably Tuesday as well!) but come next year we’ll all be there again not wanting to miss the privilege of dancing at such aworld renowned ballroom.

Yesterday was our medal presentation dance for the NATD (National Association of Teacher’s of Dancing) examinations which were taken in December last year. There were over 150 examinations taken in Ballroom, Latin American, Sequence and Line Dancing. All dancers achieved more than the basic pass, with a few commended and the majority achieving highly commended.

It is so pleasing when the majority of these dancers along with supporting parents, grandparents, friends and wider family come along and join together in our social dance and awards presentation ceremony.

All too often we are busy at events and competitions, whereas yesterday allowed time to have a chat and catch up with fellow dancers in a relaxed environment.

Although, there was plenty to occupy everyone, with lots of general dancing, dance displays, a charity raffle and of course the awards ceremony. Not forgetting or course time for tea and homemade cakes.

All the medallists took part in a display. They showcased their current work in waltz, quickstep, tango, cha cha cha, jive and rumba. With the more experienced dancers partnering those less experienced. It was then the turn of these more experienced dancers to provide their own cabaret. This year the theme was Mary Poppins and they danced a fusion of waltz, foxtrot, tango, quickstep and viennese waltz. It was a very tricky routine which they all pulled off brilliantly.

This year the raffle was in aid of Cancer Research. Thank you to those who bought tickets and donated prizes. In total you raised £105 – thank you very much.

The school award, this year, was awarded to someone who has been with us for about five years. They take all NATD and ISTD examinations and compete both at the medallist competitions and on the open sequence circuit. Aside from being a keen, enthusiastic and helpful member of the school she achieved success in all her exams and competitions over the last year. Therefore the school award for 2017 was awarded to Grace Phipps – many congratulations.

Thanks must go to the FRoGS (Friends of George Spencer) for providing lovely homemade cakes and refreshments, to Chris for enabling us to use George Spencer and to everyone who attended for making the afternoon a most enjoyable success.

Next for the medallist competitors, we have the second qualifying competition of the year at Castleford. For the sequence competitors, they have a very busy few weeks with competitions at Walsall Town Hall, The Tower Ballroom Blackpool and Dudley College. Then before we know it, it will be our own competition at Long Eaton in March. We hope to see you at one (or all) of these events.

 

For once the weather was kind to to us as we made our way to the first ISTD qualifier of the year at Kettering. This is always a busy event being the first of the year and being fairly central it attracts some of the southern schools who we don’t normally meet other than at Blackpool. Final places are therefore tough to come by, often a number of rounds have to be fought through to get to a final, particularly in the Juvenile and Junior events.

Our under 16 years contingent was smaller this year as both Molly and Olivia have turned 16 and so now join the adult ranks. Nevertheless our younger team members put in some sterling performances with Kaitlyn qualifying in both her ballroom and Latin events, Jack qualifying in both ballroom and Latin (having moved up a grade this year) and also in sequence, Grace making the final of both her ballroom and sequence (having to dance through three rounds of both) and finishing 2nd in the latter event. Chloe and Isobel also made the sequence final so we had all three of our dancers in that final. Paige (also moving up a grade) came 3rd in her ballroom event which was an excellent achievement. So all in all the day got off to a very good start with everyone making at least one final.

The adult events followed and whilst there wasn’t quite the same volume as with the children’s events there were still many quality dancers. In the sequence events: Josh, Grace, Molly and Olivia all made the final from one of the largest entries in the adult field, Chris and Serena came 3rd and 1st respectively in their event and Andy, Allison, Dennis, Dawn and Sue all made the final of their event.

In the ballroom events there were final places for Charlotte Brightwell, Olivia, Craig, Grace, Molly, Chris, Libbie, Serena, Josh, Allison, Dawn, Andy and Geraldine together with wins for Charlotte Bennett, Hazel and Sue. Reaching the Latin finals were: Charlotte Bennett, Charlotte Brightwell, Craig, Grace, Chris, Hazel, Serena, Josh, Allison and Geraldine, with Sue treating everyone to a solo demonstration of her Cha Cha Cha to win that event!

Naturally there is much work still to be done and the next opportunity will soon be upon us at Castleford in February. Boris enjoyed meeting up with his chums once more and exchanging stories from the festive season and of course a huge thank you once again to our partners, Luke, Alex and Liam without whom it would be difficult to achieve as much as we do.

Next up is the NATD presentation dance in two weeks so make sure you have your tickets.

The year has barely begun and we were once again off to Blackpool, this time for the Champions of Tomorrow Sequence events in the Empress Ballroom of the Winter Gardens. Sadly the scaffold is still a prominent feature but this did not diminish the event in any way. In action this time were Josh & Grace, Stuart & Andrea, Neil & Carla and Andy & Dawn. Dennis & Sue were also due to take part but sadly had to withdraw due to illness but still came along to give everyone else their support.

This was the first outing for most of the dancers so time to blow away the January blues and shake off the excesses of the festive season. Following even a short time away you can quickly get out of shape and loose that competitive edge without realising it. Nevertheless all of the couples gave an excellent account of themselves with all of them making all of their finals.

Josh & Grace consolidated their position in the Amateur field securing a 3rd and two 6th placings in their events, building on their success at the British Championships in October. Whilst Stuart and Andrea were runners up in both their events once again consolidating their position in this field.

Neil & Carla won the over 35 years event and Andy and Dawn were runners up in the same event. In the open events Neil & Carla also had a 2nd, two 3rds and one 4th place whilst Andy and Dawn won the open Latin event and finished 3rd, 4th and 6th in their other events.

Therefore, a good opening to the new term and it’s now full steam ahead to the next event, which will be the ISTD qualifier at Kettering on Sunday. This always proves to be a tough event with it being the first qualifier of the year and everyone keen to secure their place at Grand Finals. Watch out for the report soon.

Dear Dancing Family,

As we prepare for the Christmas festivities and before I leave to spend time with my family and friends in Bearmuda, I would just like to take this opportunity to say what a pleasure it has been to support you all year in your endeavours along with the other mascot bears. I can see how hard you all work and the commitment you give and are proud to be able to witness your achievements whatever they may be.

I wish you and your families a very merry Christmas and happy and successful New year. I look forward to seeing you all again in 2018.

Best wishes,

Boris

This year saw the the 5th series of Strictly George Spencer and in recognition of this we invited back six members of staff: Mary, George, Harry, Hymke, Steve and Debbie, along with eight students; Keshini, Ethan, Emily, Archie, Emma, Alex, Fenton and Sophie, who had all taken part in a previous series. As usual they were paired with our dancers; Luke, Liam, Alex, Josh, Grace, Emily, Molly, Olivia, Karen, Paul, Andy, Allison, Stuart and Craig.

Since they had all danced previously, the contestants had different rhythms to the ones they had had previously and more challenging choreography. This year we had chosen the Tango, Cha Cha Cha and Samba alongside the Slow Foxtrot, a notoriously difficult dance, and one which we had not used previously.

The show opened in dramatic style with Chris swirling his cape before tossing it to one side only to be resurrected in the form of Louise to perform a combination of Viennese Waltz and Paso Doble to “The Black Pearl”. An unusual combination which seemed to capture the audience’s imagination and set the scene for things to come

Our contestants were then introduced and following the usual ten weeks of training they performed their two routines and group dance in front of a capacity crowd of over 200 people and all did brilliantly. Our Judges; Claire, Andrew and Michelle then gave comments and it was obvious that they were impressed by the standard each of the competitors had reached in such a short space of time.

Whilst any of the couples were worthy finalists the ones selected for the final by the judges were: Harry and Grace, Hymke and Liam, Keshini and Craig, Ethan and Karen and Emma and Luke.

In a slight change this year the audience were then able to select a further two couples who they thought should also be in the final. This was to be done following the group dance and so the dancers took to the floor to perform a complex jive routine in which they did a great job. The two “wild cards” chosen by the audience were then announced as Archie and Molly and Fenton and Olivia.

Following this there was a Rumba/Cha Cha Cha routine performed by Craig assisted by Grace, Emily, Molly and Olivia which was very well received by the enthusiastic audience. As many of you will know, Craig was a competitor in the first series who then, having enjoyed it so much, joined the dance school and returned the following year as a partner. Since then he has gone on to achieve great success in competitions including winning his age and grade category at the ISTD Grand Finals in Blackpool. We therefore thought it fitting to include such a number in this celebration of the last five years.

The finalists all then performed their favourite dance once more and the judges scored each performance to guide the audience to who they thought should be crowned champion. All the couples improved on their first round performances and it was clear that it was going to be a difficult decision.

Prior to the announcement of the winners, Alex and Liam gave a lovely demonstration of a fusion of Waltzes during which a complete hush descended over the room and which received a standing ovation from the audience.

The moment had then arrived to announce the winners and they were announced as Ethan and Karen who had performed a lively and engaging Samba. They were popular and well deserved winners, congratulations to both of you.

Of course evenings like this don’t arrange themselves and we must extend our grateful thanks to the staff at George Spencer, especially John, for helping with the set up, lighting, filming and sound and a number of other tasks which help the event run smoothly. We also need to thank our dancers for giving up their time and taking time off work to assist in rehearsals and be available on the evening. Some of them have been present at each of the weekly sessions whilst others have had long journeys to make themselves available, we thank you all for your contribution it could not be done without you. Furthermore some of the ladies lent their dresses to the contestants so they would look the part, a very generous gesture. Also we would like to thank the parents of some our dancers for bringing them along to rehearsals each week again it is an invaluable contribution.

Finally a huge thank you once again to Chris for all the hard work he puts into the event to help make it the spectacle that it is, even though he is no longer at the school, and also for presenting the evening alongside Louise. The comments we have received from both those involved and the audience have all been extremely positive and confirm what a great show it is.

One of the enjoyable things about the show is seeing how not only the contestants have grown in confidence and ability but also how some of our dancers have developed along the way.

Finally, Boris remarked that it was a very enjoyable evening and definitely the best one yet.

Following the excitement of “Strictly” we had the annual Christmas party, the following evening at the Hilton hotel as last year. It gives everyone a chance to chill out and perhaps get to know people a bit better in a different setting. It is a great way to celebrate the end of another busy but enjoyable year as well as kick off the festive season.

Last Saturday and Sunday was dedicated to our annual examination session with the NATD (National Association of Teachers of Dancing). Our examiner this year was Miss Rickards. Whilst she is not able to speak about specific performances, upon leaving, she did comment that she’d had a most enjoyable two days and had witnessed some quality dancing.

It was pleasing for us to see that everyone was exceedingly well turned out and gave a full performance. This isn’t as easy as it sounds when the room is empty except for an audience of one (+ Boris, of course).

Well done to everyone for their hard work and dedication and thank you to Ruth for her assistance over the weekend. The presentation dance will be Sunday 28th January at George Spencer and tickets will be on sale soon.

This week is another action packed week as on Friday we have Strictly Reunited at George Spencer which promises to be another exciting evening followed on Saturday by the annual Christmas Party. Look out for future reports and photographs.

It was a small but dedicated team that ventured to the NATD competition, only two weeks after all the excitement of Blackpool. This is the last competition of the year and so is usually quite a relaxed affair. Better still it was only at Sandiacre so we didn’t have to set out too early in the morning! It was also one of the coldest mornings so far this year and we had to scrape ice from the car windscreen before we set off. Boris was certainly pleased to have his jumper!

We may have been few in number but nevertheless our dancers were on form, winning nearly every event in which we had someone entered.

In the Under 35 years events Molly and Emily, dancing together for the first time, won both their ballroom and Latin events with Craig and Karly coming 2nd and 3rd in the same events. In the Over 35 years events Chris and Serena won the ballroom event with Andy and Dawn in 2nd place then in the Latin event Andy and Dawn were placed 2nd with Chris and Serena in 3rd place. In the open ballroom event Molly and Emily won with Craig and Karly 2nd, Andy and Dawn 3rd and Chris and Serena 4th. The Latin followed and again Molly and Emily won with Craig and Karly, Chris and Serena and Andy and Dawn being placed 3rd, 5th and 6th respectively.

Many of our dancers were in action again in the adult and child events, partnering children from other dance schools. With the largest entry of the day, Andy was the only one who made a final with his partner, finishing 6th.

An enjoyable and successful day was had by all and Boris remarked that it was nice to have a relaxing day following the full on experience which is Grand Finals! With exams next week followed swiftly by Strictly Reunited there is plenty to keep us busy before we all prepare to take a well deserved break over the festive season. Well done everyone and I’m sure you are all pleased to have made the effort to go.

It took twenty six (yes 26) hours of cometitions for it to happen and then it did, – we got our first winner of the weekend – Josh and Grace won the under 35 years silver/gold waltz. Huge congratulations.

It was an extremely long and very tough weekend. The Empress Ballroom was reopened just for our event. The ceiling and scaffolding towers are a feat of engineering, some may even call it art, the dance floor was relaid, chairs squeezed into every available space, Disney themed decorations and special lighting effects created to mask the towers and after much speculation, concern and hard work at 8.30am Saturday morning the competitions began. The next twelve hours were taken over by the children’s events. The team this year consisted of Kaitlyn, Luke, Ellie, Shanae, Chloe, Grace S, Isobel, Paige, Molly, Jack, Olivia and Leila. Everyone looked lovely – beautiful hair, makeup, shoes and clothes. There were a few nerves and a little over excitement at the start of the day, due to the scale of the event but everyone achieved at least one recall. Special achievements of note are Paige made the semi final of her waltz and rumba, Molly the semi final of her foxtrot, Luke the semi final of his rumba. Then in the couples Olivia & Molly made the semi final of their tango from 67 couples and Luke & Chloe the semi final of their rumba from 78 couples!

After all the hard work, Saturday evening was a time to relax and unwind at the social dance. This year’s fancy dress theme was Disney and a large group of our children, parents and adult dancers teamed up to recreate 101 Dalmations. Martin was a sight to behold as Cruella and whilst we might not have quite reached 101, the dogs certainly took over the parade. I was just a little worried about the future dance results of the person who tiddled up Nicky’s leg!!!!!  but I’m very relieved to be able to report that she (clue) had a first class set of results on Sunday.

All too soon the 5.30am alarm was ringing Sunday morning and off we went again. The first round was 8.30am and I’m pleased to say everyone was ready, alert and raring to go. The first events of the day were the sequence where we had a very good set of results.
In the juvenile, Chloe reached the semi final. Isobel and Grace S then made it to the final,  Isobel coming a highly delighted 6th and Grace an extremely proud 3rd.
In the junior section Jack and Olivia reached the semi final and Molly achieved a final placing, coming 6th. Very well done.
Then we had the under 35 years sequence, which is an especially tough category. Getting a recall were Emily, Alexander, Paul, Libbie and Charlotte B and making it through the semi final and then the final were Josh and Grace. They were placed 7th and 4th respectively. Well done.

In the over 35 years sequence Chris had a recall to the semi final and in the final were Neil, Karen and Serena. They were placed 6th, 5th and 3rd respectively. Well done again.
In the over 50 years section we had a wealth of dancers. Getting a recall was Geraldine. Then into the semi final were Sue and Christine and onto the final were Dawn, Carla, Dennis, Allison and Andy. They were placed 7th, 6th, 5th, 4th and 3rd.
The sequence is the genre we pride ourselves on excelling in and as you can see from the wealth of recalls, semi final and final placings this year was no exception.

It was then onto the rest of the day with individual ballroom and Latin events. Everyone got at least one recall in this section, with 17 semi final placings and 7 final spots. These were awarded to Charlotte B in both her quickstep & cha cha cha, both 5th places. Grace P achieved 2nd in her foxtrot, Sue 5th in her tango/quickstep, Serena 5th in her jive, Allison 6th in her samba/rumba and Geraldine 4th in her rumba / samba.

Eventually at 9.00pm (yes, thirteen hours after the first competition of the day), we reached the couples events. This is a lovely way to finish the weekend because the teachers and partners get a chance to sit down with a glass of wine, no no I mean because it lifts everyone’s energy levels back up for some super dancing to finish the day. This year’s pairings were Alexander & Libbie, Craig & Charlotte B, Karly & Emily, Josh & Grace, Tony & Hazel, Peter & Carol, Chris with both Serena and Allison, Neil & Carla, Dennis & Sue and Andy & Dawn. Everyone got at least one recall, with final placing going to Josh & Grace (1st & 3rd), Neil & Carla (2nd & 3rd), Chris & Serena (3rd), Dennis & Sue (4th & 7th) and Andy & Dawn (2nd & 5th), Craig & Charlotte (6th)

As I have said it was a very long weekend and just to be able to say you were there, either as a dancer, parent, friend, partner or supporter is a huge achievement and one which we are, and hope you are also, proud to have been part of.  Weekends like these remain part of you forever and become one of those life experiences which you quote for years to come.  New ‘character building’  moments were experienced, new friendships were made, there were lots of laughs and probably a few tears but overall we hope you all thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

The weekend would not be possible without the incredible time and effort given by those who partner. Luke, Liam, Alex and Ruth. Thank you so very much. Also to Emily & Josh who stepped in a couple of times. Both of which resulted in their partners reaching their finals.

We are exceedingly proud of you all – the effort everyone puts into not just their dancing but their hair, makeup, dresses, suits, timekeeping, organisation, behaviour and support for one other is something which cannot ever be underestimated.

For those of you interested in the history (and to show it is possible!) we have been attending ISTD Grand Finals for 10 years now and the elite list of previous winners reads as follows :
Andy 5.5 wins (sequence in 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015 & ballroom couples 2012)
Josh 2.5 wins (ballroom 2013, 2015 & ballroom couples 2017)
Geraldine 2 wins (ballroom and Latin 2016)
Elizabeth 2 wins (ballroom & Latin 2015)
Molly 1 win (ballroom 2015)
Craig 1 win (ballroom 2015)
Serena 1 win (ballroom 2014)
Karen H 1 win (sequence 2013)
Dennis 1 win (ballroom 2013)
Leila 1 win (Latin 2011)
Miriam 1 win (ballroom 2011)
Luke 1 win (sequence 2010)
Iris 1 win (ballroom 2009)
Grace P 0.5 win (ballroom couples 2017)
Dawn 0.5 win (ballroom couples 2012)

Well here we are at Blackpool again for the British Sequence Championships but not quite as we know it. Due to the ongoing roof issues in the Empress Ballroom we were relocated to the Spanish Hall, which is a beautiful ballroom upstairs in the Wintergardens complex. Whilst the dance floor was much smaller than we are used to the room had a lovely atmosphere and as usual our team of dancers and supporters provided great vocal support for each other.

Sunday commenced with the Social Open Modern Sequence event, the Senior Classical Championship and the Amateur Modern Sequence Championship. In the Social event there were 19 couples. Dennis & Sue reached the semi final stage whilst Andrew & Dawn and Neil & Carla reached the final. Andrew & Dawn were placed 5th and Neil & Carla an extremely delighted 2nd place.

In the Senior Championship, Stuart & Andrea were recalled to the final and were highly delighted to achieve runners up position.

Josh & Grace danced their first British Amateur Championship, as last year they won the social events. This is a huge ‘step up’ both in terms of complexity of dances and standard of dance required. Therefore, we were all very satisfied when they were recalled to the final and came 6th. This event was particularly special as two of the test dances were arranged by Robert and myself and one by Luke.

It was then on to Monday, which meant the Over 35yrs Social Classical event and the Professional Inventive dance competition. All six members of our team, Dennis, Sue, Andrew, Dawn, Neil & Carla were delighted to reach the final and were placed a very well deserved 5th, 4th and 2nd respectively.

I’m also pleased to report that Robert and I were successful in the Inventive dance competition and won with our Milwaukee Waltz. We are very proud to have now achieved the most ever Blackpool inventive dance winners with this being our 16th win.

All too soon it was Tuesday and the last day of the festival. Stuart & Andrea danced in the Senior Modern Sequence Championship and Josh & Grace in the Amateur Classical Sequence Championship. Both couples gave sterling performances and tried their very hardest. Stuart & Andrea were recalled to the final and managed to repeat their Sunday evening performance by taking the runners up position again. On this occasion, Josh & Grace although close to the final did not quite make it this time. They did however dance their best and are already looking forward to the next set of challenges.

Overall it was a fabulous few days. All the ladies had beautiful new dresses which looked amazing (the Gentlemen didn’t look too bad either!). As a team we had some super results with everyone achieving at least one of their personal goals. My overriding memories of the festival was the great camaraderie and team spirit shown by everyone. Whilst everyone was very focussed on achieving their own goals they also showed great support to all other members. Also, over the few days we had a few surprise visits from supporters which was a lovely gesture.

On a final note, I passed the back door of the Empress Ballroom on several occasions and each time there was drilling and hammering coming from inside so hopefully plans are on track for the reopening at the beginning of November.