Remembering through music and dance
ACROSS the ages music and dance have inspired, entertained and brought people together in good times and bad for celebrations and commemorations.
Even at times of collective crisis such as the Second World War, the power of music and dance has helped to keep spirits high and to help carry people through to brighter days.
Since Regency times, Pittville Pump Room has resonated to the sound of music and the thousands of people who have danced their way across the floor of the iconic main ballroom, under the beautiful ornate domed ceiling.
Next week the country pauses to mark Remembrance Day, November 11, and to pay tribute to those who lost their lives in wars and conflicts protecting our freedoms. During those dark years of both the First and the Second World Wars, music and dance provided a lifeline for people, a way to hold on to normal life, to smile, laugh and feel happiness, however fleeting.
Pittville Pump Room and Cheltenham Town Hall, two of the iconic venues managed by The Cheltenham Trust, played key roles during the Second World War.
The pump room was taken over by the American GIS in 1942, when the US entered the war, with servicemen living in the upstairs rooms and the ground floor, and part of the park, used for storage.
Those same servicemen joined the local community for dances at the town hall where the reality of the war was eased by music and dance for a few hours.
The pump room is once again a dance hub and this Remembrance Day the trust is paying its own tribute to the fallen of the world wars and conflicts with a Forties and Forces themed dance on Friday November 11.
Dancers are invited to pay homage to the 1940s by dressing in outfits, and uniforms, of the era as a tribute to the time in history. Music from the era will be played by local DJS Rob Mcelvanney, Paul Grace and Mervyn Morris, and there will be a fun 1940s dance class for everyone to participate in and enjoy with Erica and Cliff of Swingout Swindon.
So, dab on the Brylcreem and set those Victory rolls and we’ll see you on the dance floor at the wonderful Pittville Pump Room.
Find out more and book your tickets at: https://www.cheltenhamtownhall. org.uk/event/forties-and-forcesdance-at-pittville-pumproom-424557/