Miss Elliott has been busy, she has multiple performances building up her calendar, one of them being the Dance Showcase, with more than 15 acts happening on Wednesday 12th February 2025, this is bound to be big, genres of all kinds will commence, solos, duos, group acts, you name it. So without further ado, let’s deep dive into this article.
You may be wondering, Why is all of this even happening? Well, Miss Elliott thought that it would be a fantastic idea to let the parents, and the students, see what Dance was really all about in this school, and to do this, she decided not to put a theme on this showcase so that you could see what dance is to TIFS and the wide range of dances taught, without just narrowing it down to one thing/theme.
Moving swiftly along, I went ahead and interviewed none other than the director of it all, Miss Elliott. You’ve heard me talk a lot about her but you have not actually heard her part in this all, so let’s take a step back and let her have her time:
INTERVIEWER: How did you come up with the dances for the showcase?
MISS ELLIOTT: The process is about finding music that suits the style I am teaching. For example, in contemporary, I will use a playlist and get a general feel for what I want the piece to be throughout the music
INTERVIEWER: Are the choreographies completely up to you or do you have a plan to follow?
MISS ELLIOTT: When I choreograph it is just me, I will take inspiration from some other choreographers such as Bob Fosse. However, there is nothing we really go off of, so we start from scratch and work together with the pupils head on.
INTERVIEWER: Are you happy with the dances so far?
MISS ELLIOTT: Yes, they are going really well and pupils have worked exceptionally hard, with Ballet and Point to Jazz and Contemporary. I am very happy with their efforts and they should be proud of what they have achieved.
INTERVIEWER: Is there anything you aren’t happy with so far?
MISS ELLIOTT: I keep wanting to add more dances and it is hard to scale back, this is obviously a great problem to have though.
INTERVIEWER: Are the performers doing well?
MISS ELLIOTT: Yes, I am impressed with their pick up speed and the range of styles on offer and how diverse the dances are.
INTERVIEWER: Are they listening/following instructions?
MISS ELLIOTT: Yes they are working hard and know they have to as some of the stuff we are doing has potential risk hazards and is advanced choreography including acrobatics and tricks so instructions need to be listened to very carefully.
INTERVIEWER: Can the performers pitch in with ideas for the choreography/ can they tweak things?
MISS ELLIOTT: Of course! I love hearing ideas from pupils, especially when it is solos as they need to recognise what style of dancer they are and lean into their strengths and interests.
By Eleanor K
