Project Dance Summer School 2015
Sixty-four young dancers attended our 2015 Project Dance Summer School...
The 4-day course was open to students studying Grade 2-Advanced levels and included a packed timetable each day of warm-up, ballet, repertoire, jazz and commercial and either contemporary or musical theatre, with top Scottish teachers. We were delighted to have some former CSBS student drop in for classes over course, including students who are now training full-time in dance. There is a fabulous record of each day on our CSBS Facebook page - please go and have a look through each gallery of photos by CSBS teacher Amanda.
Learning from the best...
We were very fortunate to have some of Scotland's top teachers instructing the students over the course:
- Sara-Maria Barton (Ballet and Repertoire) : Genée International Ballet Competition medallist, Sara-Maria, has had contracts with all of the major British ballet companies. She both trained and is now Artistic Director at Ballet West.
- Kelly Marie McCole (Ballet and Repertoire) : Kelly trained and performed with Ballet West and was also a Geneé International Ballet Competition finallist. She now teaches at the full-time school and on their outreach scheme.
- Erin Jardine (Commercial) : Erin is a professional dancer and freelance teacher. She has worked with top names including Iggy Azalea, Jessie J, Noisettes, Olly Murs, BBC and more.
- Claire McAlister (Jazz) : A former CSBS student, Claire is the coach for Starshine cheerleaders and a PE teacher at Larbert High where she is also head of the new Dance Centre of Excellence.
- Carlie-Anne Chuchla (Contemporary) : A former CSBS student, Carlie-Anne has graduated from full-time dance training. She has extensive performing experience and was delighted to be back home teaching our contemporary workshops.
- Amanda-Louise Clark (Musical Theatre) : One of our CSBS teachers, Amanda has a wealth of dance and theatre experience across the UK, both in production and performance.
On the final day of the course, parents were invited to watch an informal performance showcasing just a little of what the students had been learning. The course was mainly focussed on technique and mastering new steps but did include learning short routines.
T-shirts, certificates and awards
For the first year, students were able to buy a souvenir t-shirt for the course and almost everyone did! The t-shirts (and certificates) were designed by CSBS dance teacher Amanda and proved a big hit.
Every student was presented with a certificate on completion of the course. Two 'Star Performer' awards were also presented to each group. The faculty chose 2 students who they thought had shown just a little extra hard work, determination, enthusiasm and talent over the course. Their discussions were intense because all the participants had worked so hard and progressed so much in each class. The awards were presented to:
- Group 1 Star Performers - Sarah Firth and Sara McDonald
- Group 2 Star Performers - Emma Hurry and Holly Robertson
- Group 3 Star Performers - Lucy Guthrie and Laura Stirling
- Group 4 Star Performers - Lucy Hutton
Please have a look through the gallery of photos from the performance and presentation on our CSBS Facebook page. Watch a glimpse of the ballet lessons in the video below:
Many thanks to the Community Access staff at Grangemouth High School who were extremely helpful throughout the week and also to CSBS teachers Amanda and Sammy who managed the entire event.