GETTING CREATIVE ACROSS CORNWALL…

Catch up with our Get Creative youth groups

Our popular Youth Theatre and Youth Dance groups are the cornerstone of HfC's Get Creative outreach work, which engages more than 10,000 young Cornish people each year. In this piece, we're catching up with all the goings on within our youth companies...

International Dance Day

At the end of April we threw the spotlight on International Dance Day, which seemed like the perfect excuse to celebrate the power of dance - on and off the Cornwall Playhouse stage.

A Youth Dance performance on the Cornwall Playhouse stage, mage by Hugh Hastings

"Dance has the power to move us, to inspire us, to wow us, to entertain us. From Strictly stars to our own incredible Youth Dancers, from companies like Rambert and Motionhouse, to all the dazzling dance schools who perform here at the Cornwall Playhouse..."

Helen Tiplady, Deputy Creative Director

For more on our response to International Dance Day, take a look here...

Young Company Rehearsals...

As the month of May began, our Young Company started rehearsals for their upcoming performance of Blue Stockings by Jessica Swale. Set in Cambridge, 1896, the play takes its name from a derogatory term for female intellectuals. Throughout this period, women were allowed to attend university, but weren't permitted to receive a formal qualification at the end of their studies - unlike their male classmates.

Blue Stockings will be presented on Sat 03 Aug on the Cornwall Playhouse stage - keep an eye on our social channels for more info and details about tickets.

Youth Dance

Our Junior, Intermediate and Senior Youth Dancers met again on 05 May to begin working on their Jack and the Beanstalk themed pieces. Inspired by our upcoming festive Cornwall Playhouse production of this popular English fairytale, each group will perform their pieces at Watergate Bay's Arts on the Beach in June, alongside a host of local and national professional artists who will partake in the 3-day arts beach fest.

HfC Youth Dance perform at 2023's Arts on the Beach at Watergate Bay. Image by Hugh Hastings

Dance, theatre and exam anxiety

Many of our young company members have school exams coming up soon which inevitably raises anxiety levels. We believe that movement, play and a change of scene are an essential piece of the jigsaw as our young people begin to navigate the pointy end of their academic careers...

"There were a few tears from those taking their exams this week during the regular 'check in' that we do at the start of each dance and theatre session - but dancing, moving, playing theatre games and working with peers for a few hours gave them light relief from exam revision and stress. I'm very glad they have chosen to keep coming as this creative release is really important for them and their wellbeing. We're also covering the importance of eating well, sleeping well and having a good revision timetable to help mitigate stress. We wish them all Chons Da for the weeks ahead, whilst also remembering exams do not define you!"

Helen Tiplady, Deputy Creative Director

 

Want to be a part of it all?

Do you have a passion for performance? Want to sing or dance on stage? Then Hall for Cornwall's Get Creative scheme and our Young Companies may be for you.

Youth Dance, image by Hugh Hastings

Work with industry professionals to explore creativity, collaboration and choreography in regular workshops, while working towards exciting projects. You'll even have the chance to perform on the Cornwall Playhouse stage during our end of term showcases!

One of our Youth Dancers said: “I’ve been part of the Hall for Youth Dance Company for 10 years and performing on the Hall for Cornwall stage at the showcase was a beautiful dream come true.”

We have workshops for ages 5 – 19 and welcome all levels of experience.

All Boys Dance, image by Hugh Hastings

Our next date for the diary is Sun 17 May when our All Boys Dance Summer Term begins. There's still time to get creative with us!

Come along and explore your creativity, while learning new dance and performance skills. Based at AMATA on Falmouth University's Penryn campus, our workshops are open to complete beginners and performers of all experience levels. Find out more here.

While most of our youth dance and theatre terms are well underway, it's not too late to join and we're always happy to chat to late joiners. Email [email protected] to register your interest and find out more about our youth programmes.

A date for your diary...

RSC Associate Schools Showcase

?  TUE 11 JUN

Primary and secondary schools from across the RSC Associate Schools programme in Cornwall join forces to bring you their version of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night.

The Showcase, supported by the Royal Shakespeare Company, represents the culmination of work between practitioners, teachers and students, and sees 200+ school children take to the Cornwall Playhouse stage, some for the very first time, to present this hilarious comedy of love, disguise and misrule!

Learn more here.