AWA Dance Leadership Bootcamp

The weekend of 26th-28th February saw Dance Scholar Livi (Year 8) attend an empowering bootcamp for Leadership in Dance run by Advancing Women’s Aspirations with Dance (AWA Dance) and organised for Leighton Park by Dance teacher, Beth Butler.

Conducted entirely online, the event united girls across the UK together in virtual workshops encompassing presentations, discussions, practical exercises, group work and even some K-Pop Dance choreographed by Korean Dance champion Sunbee Han! K-Pop Dance is very sharp in dynamic and uses lots of intricate movements that link to the lyrics of the song. In terms of movement, the style is a bit like a fusion of hip hop and jazz and its main feature is that it is always to a Korean pop song. It can be performed as a solo or in a group but if everyone does these really intricate movements in time, it is almost hypnotic

The guest speakers included: Avatara Ayuso, Artistic Director of AWA Dance Company and Dance activist; Helen Shute, Chief Executive and Executive Producer of Rambert since 2017; Katheryn Stamp, PhD in Inclusive Dance at Coventry University and the Head of Communications and Impact at AWA Dance; Anna Watkins, a freelance dancer and Artistic Director of Watkins Dance Company; Tamar, also known as Unique Tay, a community-based Dance practitioner, workshop facilitator, writer and founder of West Midlands based, Unique Movez Dance Collective; and Céline Gittens, a principal dancer at the Birmingham Royal Ballet.

Livi reflected, “This was a truly amazing experience and I learned so much about myself, the world and how we can change anything if we want to. A huge part of being heard is having the confidence to speak up about your beliefs, values and ideas. Although we don’t tend to take compliments in a way that builds confidence, the most important part of being confident is knowing your power. The main thing I took away is the quote, ‘The moment you exist, you make an impact, so make it good.'”