Ahead of their visit we spoke to Helena Webb from South East Dance about Dad Dancing. 

Could anyone ever persuade you to take your dance moves to the stage? 

Meet three brave dads who agreed to dance with their daughters in a new show.  Joined by a supporting cast of fathers, sons and daughters of all ages, they fearlessly slip and slide their way through their similarities and differences, hopes and regrets to a soundtrack including Beethoven, Whitney Houston and Pendulum.

Reclaiming ‘dad dancing’ from the cynics, this dynamic group of performers encourage us all to dance our own dance with joy.

Here’s what Helena said…

• Where did the idea for Dad Dancing come from?

The idea for Dad Dancing came when Alex, Rosie and I were training at Laban. Our dads would come to see our shows and would be totally bemused. Or, they would conjure up these deep and meaningful narratives from abstract work. So we decided to invite them into the studio so they could see what we actually do! Once we started working with them, we began to think more and more about how often men are riddiculed for their dancing and we wanted to flip that on it’s head and celebrate their moves. 

• Is it a very personal project?

It is! Try inviting your family to work with you and see if it can be impersonal! It has also become more politically personal for me, I really believe in the ideals of the show; that everyone can dance and that dancing together can transform relationships.

• How many participants will be performing?

In Brighton we have 22 father-figures, sons and daughters of all ages joining Alex, Rosie and I and our dads on stage. 

• Have you started rehearsing?

Yes, we actually started working on Dad Dancing in 2012! The re-working for this tour started in July this year though. And workshops with the local cast began in August. 

• What do you want the audience to take from the performance?

We hope that audience members leave with a real belief in dancing! We imagine their responses to the show will be as varied as the relationships they have to their fathers. It is really important to us that we don’t just tell one story, we hope that everyone hears stories they can relate to in this show.

Dad Dancing will be at ACCA on Friday 27 October at 8pm. Book tickets now. Pay what you decide tickets are available. http://bit.ly/2yBOuBl