DANCE LIST
0 FOCUS ON DANCE Assembly Rooms. 54 George Street. Edinburgh. The Supper Room bar and cafe will be open for food and drink throughout the week from 10am—1 1pm (Bar open until 10am 27—29 Mar).
Performances
0 Street Performers Display George Street. Edinburgh. 2—3pm. Free. What better way to get a dance week hopping than to take to the streets. George Street a la Covent Garden stages all the latest street crazes. Watch out — dance is infectious.
o Multi-Style Dance Display Music Hall. 4-5pm. Free. A multi-style dance display presented by young people from London and Scotland and including:
IDJ (London) From the street into the
A ‘Focus On Dance’ is justwhat Scotland needs. With the dribble of contemporary dance performance on offerthroughthe year, howevergood, it takes an ambitious project like this one to build up audiences and interest appreciably. Everyone benefits in Assembly Theatre’s programme. Scotland's young companies and youth groups show theirwork, dancers from abroad visit Scotland and above all the audience get the chance to watch and participate.
A feature of the programme is the wide range of classes and workshops. Secretly harboured a desire to minuet, clasp castanets or let go in jive? Now’s your chance. And even if you have had no experience at all, many of the classes are open —which means to all ages and abilities.
Evening events too include all kinds ofdance. Jumping jazzfrom America with Will Gaines. Shobana Jeyasingh’s exotic Indian classics and a cliff-hanging performance from the acrobaticaIIy-inclined Kosh.
Pauline Daniels from the Netherlands performs mid-week, promising to be one of the contemporary highlights. Much in demand all over Europe and founder member of the Dutch group Dansproduktie (to be seen at this year’s Glasgow Mayfest) she comes to Scotland for the first time, as a solo performer. Val Bourne of Dance Umbrella, the London-based contemporary dance organisation,
FOCUS ON
IANGE
Assembly Rooms. You may have caught IDJ on The Tube or Jim '11 Fix It. Untrained. like most ofgroups in the dance display. they are the real thing — fast. raw. fuelled by energy. Angela Lee and Paul McKenzie (Scotland) The action is not all happening down south. This young pair of rock ‘n‘ rollers from Scotland intend to steal the show with a new jive routine.
King 8. and Powerful Pervez (London) Breakdance fascinates just about everyone. An urban street dance. the best is to be found down south. This duo is said to have taken London by storm.
JenniferJones and Peter Campsie (Scotland) Currently Disco Dance Champions for the West. East and South West of Scotland as well as runners-up (out of 10.000 entrants) at the UK Dancing Championships held in Novemberlast year.
STRONG FOCUS
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describes her as ‘a compelling artist, very skilled and quite individual.‘ Technically rooted in Graeme and Cunningham, she has a strong physical presence, ‘a muscle tone rare on a woman, as fine as a racehorse.’ Choreographers seek Daniels out, and in ‘No Fixed Abode' she interprets the work of several. This new piece includes dance by Hans van Manen, director of the National Ballet and principal choreographer of the
0 Jazz Dance ‘Jive on Down with Fat Sam‘s Band’ Music Hall. 8.30pm. £2.50 (£1 .50). Take the floor and dance to ‘Edinburgh‘s best jump-jive band'. seen at recent Edinburgh Festivals. Not to be missed on any account is Will Gaines who is high on energy and extraordinary talent. See Feature.
MONDAY 23
Performances
0 Spring - Lothian Youth Dance Company Ballroom. 5pm. £2 (£1 ). A presentation ofcurrent works by the company ofthirty, now just over a year old. featuring pieces by Peter Royston. Susan Crowther. Tracey Hawkes and Marilyn Williams.
0 Shobana Jeyasingh Ballroom. 8pm.
£2.50 (£1 .50). An eveningto get acquainted with one of the most elegant. sophisticated of dancers — Bharatha Natyam. the ancient classical temple dance from South India. Ankle bells mark the heat while Shobana Jeyasingh‘s gestures. right to her fingertips. narrate the stories and emotions ol'each piece.
Classes, Workshops and Lecture-Demonstrations
o Madame Bartell: Legat Classical Ballet (Elementary/Intermediate) Music Hall. 9.30—10.3()am. £2 (£1). An introduction to the Russian (Legat) System ofClassical Ballet. 0 Scottish Dance Theatre in ResidencerA ‘Build a Performance Project’ Edinburgh Suite. Mon—Fri (23—27 Mar).
Pauline Danil
Netherlands Dance Theatre, Viola Farber, a Merce Cunningham dancer of the Seventies and now choreographer and teacher at London Contemporary, and Matthew Hawkins ex-Boyal Ballet, Second Stride and Michael Clark Company. All are used to working with highly-trained and experienced dancers and their interest in her is an indication of Daniels’ exceptional abilities. (Alice Bain)
Classes: 9.30—10.30am (daily) £2 (£1).
Workshops: 10.45am—12noon (daily) £2 (£1).
Participation is now held in almost as high regard as performance as a way ofenjoying dance. and so it should be. In many ways it is even more important. Scottish Dance Theatre. headed by Peter Royston have devised a five-day series ofclasses and workshops to give everyone the chance to do both. Over five days. the work will culminate in a lunchtime performance on Fri 27 Mar.
All classes are open to people not attending the residency and participants are advised to wear loose. comfortable clothing.
0 Siren Underthun: International Folk Dance Music Hall. 11am—12. 15pm. £2 (£1). A rare opportunity to see Norwegian. Russian. Yugoslavian, Greek and American Folk Dance presented by Siren Underthun, Director ofthe Dance and Ballet Course of the Follo International Academy in Vestby. Norway.
0 Scottish Folk Dance
Class: 1pm. Bylocal teacherJames MacDonald Reid.
0 Will Gaines: Workshop (General) Music Hall. 2.30pm. £2 (£1). Don‘t miss this chance to dance and chat with Will Gaines. No experience necessary. Just bring along enthusiasm! See also Tue 2-1 Mar and Feature.
0 Shobana Jeyasingh: Bharatha Natyam (General) Ballroom. 2.30—3.15pm. £2 (£1). An introduction to the ancient origins and technique of Bharatha Natyam. 0 Derek Hartley: An Afternoon of Tap Edinburgh Suite. 3.30—5pm: Intermediate/Advanced. £2 (£1). 5—6pm: Elementary/lntermediate. For those with some experience. £2 (£1). 6—7pm: General. £1 (50p). Hartley presents a different kind of jazz dance to that of Will Gaines. More structured. it relies less on improvisation. It is nevertheless. still American jazz style. Twiggy and Wayne Sleep have been past pupils of his, but this class puts no restrictions on age or ability.
0 Sue MacLennan: Creative Contemporary (Intermediate/Advanced) Music Hall. 4—5.30pm. £2 (£1). See also Tue 24 Mar.
0 Scottish Country Dancing Music Hall. 6—7pm. £2 (£1 ). An open workshop for all ages and abilities presented by Vera Sim ofthe Edinburgh Branch of the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society.
TUESDAY 24 - Performances
0 Area One and Peg Dance Theatre Ballroom. 12.30pm. £2 (£1). A double bill featuring Area ()nc. Fife‘s longest established community dance group and Peg Dance Theatre from Renfrewshire.
0 Will Gaines: ‘Evening ofJazz' Ballroom. 8.45pm. £4 (£3). Will Gaines has danced with both the Ellington and Basic bands. He performed in the Cotton Club‘s last show in the Fifties. Now nearly sixty, he still radiates energy and warmth
20 The List 20 March — 2 April