By Mrs Ackroyd

It was an exciting opportunity to have Elevate Dance Company take workshops with two year 8 groups last Thursday (21st April). 

Their focus was to use Dance to stimulate the girls to explore ethical issues in this collaboration between the Dance Department and Philosophy and Religion. Using word stimuli linked to the Refugee Crisis, the girls were asked to create ‘freeze-frames’, which was challenging and made them think in a different way about the significance of being a refugee.

At lunchtime Elevate performed three pieces, one of which was choreographed and performed by Anna Irwin, who left BGS last year and is spending her gap year with the Company. It was wonderful to see how issues like bullying and stress could be dealt with in such a powerful way, and yet with humour and a lightness of touch.

Ella Turner said: “Although Dance and Ethics have always had big connections in my mind, most of my friends were puzzled that we were being asked to do a workshop linking Dance and Philosophy and Religion. I really enjoyed the workshop and with the way they can incorporate modern ethical issues into a piece of Dance inspired me.”

Jaya Chambers added: “I was surprised that you could take a word/words and turn them into something more powerful using movement which led to bigger ideas, emotions and understanding."