Posted on 23rd Mar
The Palace Theatre, Newark, is continuing its centenary celebrations with a new way to get moving and motivated during lockdown.
Last week, it debuted a video highlighting dances from the 1920s, the year the Palace was founded, up until the present day. Now, alongside The Acorns Project, the theatre is launching a day of online dance classes to learn some of the featured routines.
Professional choreographer Graeme Pickering, who regularly works on the Palace’s pantomimes, devised the routines for the video and will lead the virtual sessions himself, live from the Palace stage on Tuesday, 30th March.
A beginners’ session at 4.30pm will be tailored to those with little to no dance experience but who want to try something new, fun and active, learning a roaring 20s Charleston routine.
Meanwhile, more experienced dancers can join an intermediate to advanced session at 7pm, which will focus on a fun, fast-paced routine from hit 80s film Footloose. With places limited to 25, the sessions will feel personal and groups will be able to have a laugh as they learn the steps under Graeme’s expert tutelage.
Carys Coulton-Jones, business manager for the Palace Theatre, said: “It’s been wonderful to see our stage back in use with the brilliant Perri-Kae and Travis performing the video routines and now Graeme leading these classes from it. These will give local people a chance to try something different, get moving and learn some great new moves to show off when we’re able to party again.”
Tickets for the sessions will be £5 and can be booked at www.palacenewark.com. Thanks to funding from Arts Council England, and acknowledging that this has been a difficult year for many, The Acorns Project has also been able to offer five free places to Newark and Sherwood residents who find themselves experiencing financial instability.
To find out more about the classes and to see the Dance Through The Decades video, visit The Acorns Project’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/theacornsproject.
Pictured are Travis Kerry and Perri-Kae Burton dancing on the Palace stage while filming the Dance Through The Decades video.
