Rutherglen pupils dazzle with their own choreography
Dozens of young people from Rutherglen put on a dance show to remember recently as they took the lead in choreography and organising a flagship event.
Students from Trinity, Cathkin and Rutherglen high schools showed they ‘ had come of age’ as they both helped organise the South Lanarkshire Secondary Dance Competition and devised routines to perform there.
A highlight in the Active Schools calendar, the competition at Hamilton Town House on February 24 saw 250 students perform.
They took to the stage after a number of young people took part in a Y Dance level one dance leadership course which shows senior pupils how to lead and devise dance routines. With Active Schools handing over the reins, Cathkin High School choose to dance to a Step Up mash up, Trinity pupils to Adele’s Hello and Rutherglen teens to Shut up and Dance.
In another first, young people from Active Schools’ new leadership academy took responsibility for presenting the Secondary Dance Competition.
The academy offers out of school opportunities to develop skills, such as presentation, advertisement and event management that can be used in both sports and other recreational settings.
Active Schools Coordinator Kate Anderson said; ‘This event just keeps going from strength to strength and it has been a joy to watch the dancers develop over the years and to see new talent coming through.
‘ Giving pupils control over the choreography has been a long term goal and it has had an impact on the performances with a lot of new ideas being presented on stage and themes coming through.’
‘ With our Active Schools Dance groups increasing in popularity it has led to increased participation at extracurricular clubs as well as increased opportunities in dance leadership and are always keen to welcome new members who are interested in any style of dance.
Gerry Campbell, general manager, of South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture, said: “The annual competition is like a cup final for the teams taking part and they work hard on their preparation and training, the high standard of performance on the night was clearly reflected by the enthusiasm with which the sellout crowd at Hamilton Town House greeted each act.”
At the competition Lesmahagow High School took the prize for best choreography and had the best team performance in S4 to S6. Carluke High School won best team performance in S1 to S3, while Larkhall Academy’s Gary Lindsay and Eve Hinshelwood took the best individual awards.