January 2011 Issue 2
ila Burnett
e Photo: Sh
A partnership project between the IDTA, ISTD, RAD and the Royal Albert Hall working together in celebration of dance.
e u ss
I s i h t In •
Registration Opens!
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Teachers have from now until May to register, pay, choreograph, teach and video an original dance piece of their students before uploading it to the Dance Proms website.
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We take a virtual tour around the Royal Albert Hall to get a feel for what it will be like to perform at such an iconic venue where English National Ballet, Take That and many more have performed!
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We meet WebPlay and learn how they are working with Dance Proms to celebrate dance through technology.
Photos: Jack Latimer, Sheila Burnett, Marcus Ginns
Registration for Dance Proms is now open Registration for Dance Proms is now open from Wednesday 26 January – Wednesday 11 May 2011.
Who can enter? Current teachers with IDTA, ISTD or RAD (including Step into Dance) can enter students from the age of 5 up to 21 years of age on or before 13 November 2011. Teachers can enter more than one dance piece in any one of four categories: Solo, Couple, Trio or Group. Teachers and students must be resident in the United Kingdom. What type of dance? Any style of dance! From Ballet to Belly dancing; Rock ‘n’ Roll to Hip Hop, as long as your choreography is original – we want to see what moves you. Is there a cost to enter? There is a small fee of £10.00 per dance piece submitted and a discounted fee of £8.00 per additional submission made by a single teacher. What makes Dance Proms unique? Dance Proms is the first dance festival to integrate technology at all levels. From uploading original submissions to judging, and to the communication and collaboration between participants. Dance Proms will enable people from all over the country to take part in a ‘virtual dance festival’. Although the activity will be happening in different dance schools and studios, the use of technology can bring everyone together online to chat, share ideas and learn from one another. And don’t worry if you are not an IT pro, the technology we are using is very simple! In forthcoming issues of the E-book we will provide a set of easy to follow guidelines on how to video and upload your original dance pieces. Register here
Photos: Sheila Burnett, E Franks, P Baldwin
l a y Ro l l a H t r e Alb
As the Royal Albert Hall is most associated with the world’s largest classical music festival - the BBC Proms - there was really only one venue that would be good enough for the first ever Dance Proms - the Royal Albert Hall! However, the Proms are just one of a wide range of events that take place in this iconic building each year, including the RBL Festival of Remembrance, Ballroom Dancing Championships, Mountbatten Festival of Music, Bach Family Choir carols, National TV Awards, The Tennis Masters, Pop concerts, Cirque du Soleil and many more. It is remarkable to think that such an imposing building and one of London’s biggest monuments, is also a living, working institution and able to play host to and meet the challenges of all of these events. Even more remarkable is the opportunity to perform there, Dance Proms will give many young dancers the opportunity to do just that. To get a sneak preview of what that experience might be like, let us take you on a virtual tour.
• The auditorium is as wide as it is tall
Photos: Marcus Ginns, Roy Campbell-Moore, Sheila Burnett
Interesting Facts • Arena floor to Corona =
40m (131’)
• The ‘footprint’ of the building is –
5247
56,480 ft2, or 1.3 acres (0.5247 ha)
m2, or
• The whole site of the Hall including the South Steps measures
1.027 Hectare
600 metres of public corridor and 300 metres of back
• There are approximately of house corridor
• On a cold winter day, it can support
158 tonnes of snow. The temperature reaches 64C and above in the roof in the summer
Photo: Marcus Ginns
y a l WebP WebPlay and Dance Proms Celebrating Dance Through Technology WebPlay is an arts education charity dedicated to exploring how technology can enhance the live theatre experience for young audiences. After 10 years of successfully delivering innovative theatre-based projects, in 2009 we began working with dance, delivering an online project for the Royal Albert Hall and English National Ballet which linked young people in the UK and China to develop and perform their own versions of Swan Lake. WebPlay’s philosophy is that nothing replaces experiencing the performing arts live, but that simple technology can be used in profound ways to extend and deepen that experience. By bringing young people together online to journal their process, share their experiences with others and interact with dance professionals, Dance Proms will provide the performers with a rich experience of the dance world as well as enhance their personal development and bond the group as a cohesive company before they perform at the Royal Albert Hall. All interaction will happen on Page to Stage, WebPlay’s secure and easy to use online platform. Don’t worry if you’re not very experienced with IT, we specialise in simple - it won’t be any harder than sending an email and the WebPlay team will be with you every step of the way. If you have any questions please feel free to contact us either at sydney@webplay.org or on +44 (0)207 729 4161. We look forward to working with you online at Dance Proms!
Photo1: Sheila Burnett
DANCE PROMS is a partnership project between the IDTA, ISTD, RAD and the Royal Albert Hall working together in celebration of dance. Celebration of Dance Festival Limited, Incorporated in England & Wales No. 7407392 www.danceproms.co.uk