Greater Manchester is literally teaming with privately run dancing schools, and all have a large number of students, affirming that the future of live theatrical entertainment is still alive and well. Some, as indeed this one does, also offer training in singing and acting too, and so it is always a pleasure for me to support the younger generations as they - some for the first time - take their moment in the spotlight.
As you may well expect from their name, this school is based in Ashton-u-Lyne, and if going by what I saw this evening, takes pupils from aged approx 3 years upwards. And this evening's showcase was all about the students. There were no fancy or special lighting effects, no stage set, and props kept to an absolute minimum; and so with only changes in costume each time, it really was putting the students on the front line. This didn't seem to bother them though as they danced, sang and acted their way through 3 hours' worth of material; and what made this even more incredible was that they had already performed all of this at a 1pm show this afternoon, so they must have been tired by the end of it!
What was also lovely to see was that the choreography, by Rebecca Ollernshaw, was all well within the levels and capabilities of the dancers, making them feel confident with what they were presenting. Likewise, during the two short acting pieces and the solo songs, acting and singing coach Mark Derbyshire, had also made them feel very positive and secure in their endeavours.
It was also quite a varied programme, ranging from the world of contemporary pop, through Musical Theatre to the golden era of cinema with Top Hat, White Tie And Tails. There was a healthy dose of classical ballet, a contemporary ballet piece, and with some excellently executed lifts, a cheerleading number too.
With some 70 children in their charge running riot around the theatre, there was inevitably backstage noise from chatting children, but even more annoyingly and disappointingly there were children of audience members running riot actually in the theatre and during the show too, and both their parents and theatre staff did nothing to stop this.
The school has been running now for 18 years, but only this Easter time has been taken over by a new owner, and so all credit to her and the school for still continuing and producing this show with so little time in the driving seat. I wish the school much success; thank you ever so much for allowing me to watch your creativity, talent and dedication, and I look forward to seeing what The Ashton School Of Dancing will come up with next time.
Reviewer: Alastair Zyggu
Reviewed: 15th October 2016