Join in a dance and music extravaganza in Leamington

Performers of all ages from the Leamington and Warwick Academy of Dance are joining forces with players in the Spires Youth Orchestra to present a diverse programme at the Spa Centre.

What the two institutions are calling a ‘Dance and Orchestral Extravaganza’ will see dancers performing the Beatlecracker Suite - a fusion of the Beatles popular songs and excerpts from the Nutcracker, waltzing to the Blue Danube, leaping to Handel’s Royal Fireworks, and shimmying to tunes by Ollie Murrs.

The audience will be able to listen to the Ethan Gardner, a gifted young cellist in the Spires Youth Orchestra, playing Saint-Saens’ Cello Concerto and see performances by some of the of the dance students who have recently been accepted by Elmhurst ballet school.

The evening will be conducted by the Colin Touchin, who is internationally recognised as a composer, adjudicator and conductor.

Principal Vivienne Kibble said: “The evening promises to be exceptionally entertaining. Come and join us in celebrating all the young talent we have in Warwickshire.”

The academy, which has branches in Leamington, Warwick, Whitnash, Warwick Gates, Lillington, Sydenham and Southam, offers both the traditional disciplines of ballet, tap and modern dance and more diverse styles, such as street dance, drama and cancan.

The school’s performance dance group, Synergy, regularly performs in the UK and overseas and this month the group is going on tour with Spires Youth Orchestra to the Loire Valley in France.

Anyone aged from 18 months upwards is welcome to enroll in classes, which are held both during the day and in the evening.

Membership of the Spires Youth Orchestra is open to 11 to 21-year-olds and entry is by audition. The most capable players can expect to perform at concerts with the Spires Philharmonic Orchestra.

The youth orchestra meets at the Old Library in Avenue Road, Leamington, on a weekly basis.

Tickets to the Dance and Orchestral Extravaganza, which starts at 7pm, cost £10 (£8 concessions). To book, call 0845 2183540 or visit www.royalspacentreandtownhall.co.uk

To find out more about the Leamington and Warwick Academy of Dance and the Spires Youth Orchestra, go online.