AMATEUR DANCE REVIEW: Born To Dance - The Forum Theatre, Romiley. Greater Manchester.

Romiley's Forum Theatre played host to The Alicia School Of Dance this evening as they presented their annual showcase of their students' achievements to an enthusiatic audience of majority family and friends. 

The Alicia School Of Dance obviously caters for a wide range of dance styles, and takes students from as young as three years old to adult. In fact it was heartening to see more mature ladies performing their tap and street dance routines - it signifies exactly the importance schools like this have in the community.

With 29 dances in all throughout the evening, from classical ballet, contemporary ballet / dance, street dance, hip hop, tap, and commercial, it would be impossible to mention them all. Suffice to say that I enjoyed watching and supporting these youngsters / teenagers / adults, as they 'strutted their stuff' proudly showing us their skills and abilities. Some dances were more exiting than others, writing from a purely subjective point of view, but all were age and ability appropriate and all used the space well. 

What I did find was that in some instances the choreography did not seem to gel with the style and lyrics of the music being played, which was a shame; but the costuming in general was good, and the students worked extremely hard to try to convey to the audience the meaning / feel of the dances they were performing in. I do think (again, another subjective point), that the dancers could have, by and large, done to have smiled and looked like they were enjoying themselves a lot more than some of them did; but I can't take away the commitment and energy that each and every student gave to their part.

I would like here however to mention those dances which, for me, I found to be the most enjoyable. I was looking for co-ordination, precision, team-work, as well as interesting choreography, good use of space and dancers, music and lighting used etc... in other words, which dances were the most theatrical! In the order they appeared on the programme, these were: "Turn Up The Music" (Grade 1); "Zero To Hero" (Rosettes); "Church" (Seniors 1); "Circle Of Life" (Primary 1G2); "Pink" (Contemporary); "Sissy That Walk" (Seniors 1G2); "Men In Black" (Primary 2 grade 1); "Busta Rhymes" (Big Street); and my favourite of the whole evening, "Minnie The Moocher" (Senior 1 G2), - I loved the use of chairs and the tap routine was very well executed, with a lovely picture ending! Very sassy and "Chicago"-esque.

Of course the very young ones deserve a special mention... the vast majority of them being on stage and in front of an audience for their first time, and giving us all the cute and "ah" factor! With a few of them clearly loving the limelight and stealing the show!

After two years of being unable to have any real in-person sessions, and live performances being put on hold, it was great to be able to watch these enthusiastic and highly capable youngsters and teenagers doing what they love!

Reviewer - Chris Benchley
on - 25.2.22