JtD’s Young Company
About Jones the Dance’s Young Company
We want more people to dance. We want it to be something that everyone feels they can do. Not just for fun, but for so much more too. That’s what our Young Company is about. It offers young people in Wales who would usually have a lot less access to high-quality dance experiences or training than others - in our case because of d/Deafness, or where they live - the chance to dance. We bring dance to our young people, give them ways to train that suit them, in places that are easy to get to, with a close knit group who share their experiences.
Young Company runs two groups:
Jones Bach: Mid Wales Youth Dance (7-16 yrs)
Newtown
A week-long workshop series for young people, aged 7-16yrs. The next sessions will run during May half term at Fit4life dance studio and finishes with a summer school and end of year performance in August 2024.
Quiet Beats: d/Deaf Youth Dance (7-16yrs)
Cardiff
The group will come together during May half term 2024 at Rubicon Dance and will culminate in a summer school and end of year performance in August in Chapter Arts Centre.
Together Young Company is building a family of young dancers fused together by fun, trust, creativity and a love of dance. We think that building skills and confidence with a close group of friends over time, can be transformative for everyone involved.
All our Young Company sessions are designed to spark a passion for dance as well as challenge you and make you think about the things that are important to you. To help us do this, we bring inspiring dancers from a broad range of backgrounds and lived experiences to lead sessions. They’ll work with you to build the excellence, technique and strength you need to dance – as a passion, or maybe even a future career?
We have two Dance Officers, Amber Howells and Eli Williams heading up each programme. Both are skilled in working with young people and /or the d/Deaf community. They’ll be there on the ground at all times, playing a supportive, mentoring role to our dancers and the group as a whole. They’ll be a point of contact, information, guidance, and consistency. For dancers, parents, and carers alike.
It can be scary to take the step sometimes, so we always offer the chance to come and try out a session as a taster. To see if something special gets sparked. Anyone can come along or bring a friend. They’ll be welcome and looked after and there's no pressure to stay if the spark doesn’t happen.
Contact Kama for more details or to talk about any specific needs you might have that you want us to know about.
Want to know more about each project?
This Young Company has been made possible with the funding from the Arts Council of Wales, and with partnership support from The Hafren, Chapter Arts and Deaf Hub Wales
What to expect
Across the year participants will have the opportunity to take part in dance classes and workshops with Amber and Eli and also get the chance to experience different dance styles from special guest teachers and choreographers who will be both Deaf and hearing, from Wales, the UK and International. The year will end in summer schools and a short performance. There will also be the chance to create a short film that will go on tour with Jones the Dance’s new production coming in Spring 2024 but more of that later in the year.
Head over to the relevant pages for more detailed information on how to book, specific dates and times and all the other important information you will need to know.
