To most people Easter means bunnies, chocolate eggs and a long weekend off work. To some of our dancers however it means the Easter Sequence Festival at Southport.
In action this weekend we had Josh & Grace, Stuart & Andrea, Dawn & Andy, Carla & Neil and Dennis & Sue, with first time attendees Chris & Allison. Also joining the team for the first time were Hayley & Emma and it was great to see Karly coming along to support alongside the parents.
The weekend began well with all couples making at least one of their finals. Josh & Grace made the Amateur Classical Sequence final, Stuart & Andrea continuing their success from Blackpool with a second place in the 
Senior Modern Sequence final, and Hayley & Emma finishing 4th in the under 35 year’s Classical Sequence final. In the over 35 year’s section we had all four of our couples in 
the final, Carla & Neil finishing second, Dawn & Andy third, Dennis & Sue fourth and Chris & Allison a very creditable sixth, this being their first Southport and having only really just started out in this field. In the 
Latin sequence Dawn & Andy secured a win in their event with Carla & Neil second and Dennis & Sue fourth. Josh & Grace secured second place in their event. Louise and I also 
secured a win in the Modern Sequence section of the Inventive Dance competition with the Santa Fe Foxtrot. A highly successful start to the weekend then.
The next day all of our couples (except Chris & Allison) were in action once again and encouraged by the previous day’s successes. Once again Stuart and Andrea made both of their finals, finishing second once more to consolidate their place in this field. Unfortunately the Amateur finals only had five couples recalled and Josh and Grace missed out but the improvement in terms of both dancing and confidence, from their step up to this grade only at this event last year, was plain to see and commented upon by several other professionals.
Hayley and Emma made both of their finals finishing 3rd and 4th, which is a great achievement as it was Hayley’s first time at this festival. One of the highlights of the weekend was Carla & Neil winning the over 35 year’s modern sequence event, consolidating their position from the last couple of run up events and in doing so beat their great rivals for the title. In the same event Dawn & Andy and Dennis & Sue secured 3rd and 4th place respectively. The improvements shown by all couples from last year were terrific as well as the results from the first timers, which were very encouraging. It demonstrates the commitment and hard work put in by all our team. Of course it wouldn’t be the same without our supporters, led of course by Boris, who probably find it more draining than the competitors.
Following an action packed two days we all retired to 
the bar to reflect on the highs and lows and mingle with friends. Of course we had a few obligatory games to keep everyone entertained but all too soon it was over for another year and time for everyone to return home exhausted but happy.
This was the best competition I have been too. Lovely spacious venue, really enjoyed dancing with Allison, great supporters and really lovely to see Robert and Louise dance. Well worth a visit whether competing or supporting!