Dancing in your street? If you live in Eastfield, Scarborough, here’s your chance

“It should be a really fun thing to do. We’re hoping people get dressed up, get creative and get dancing!” says VOXED artistic director Wayne Parsons, introducing the #Goggledance project

THE Stephen Joseph Theatre and dance storytellers VOXED are uniting for an innovative new project in Scarborough.

They are inviting residents of the East Coast resort’s Eastfield area to bid to take part in #goggledance, a co-production wherein participants will watch a dance performance taking place outside their own homes, while filming themselves watching – and joining in.

Their footage will be incorporated into a series of short films that will include professional footage of the performance too.

The films will be posted online and on social media by both VOXED and the SJT over several weeks in the autumn.

The project is the brainchild of choreographer and director Wayne Parsons, the founder of VOXED, formerly Wayne Parsons Dance.

“We’ll be staging five live performances right outside people’s homes in Eastfield: a personalised show for that household and their neighbours,” he says.

“At an agreed time, we’ll turn up on their street and a solo dancer will perform a ten-minute piece. The live performance will be in three sections: Watch Us, Follow Me and finally a Be You section.

“All they need to do is record themselves during the show – on a mobile phone will be fine. They then send us their film and we’ll create short videos combining our performance with their homemade films that can be shared online.”

Wayne adds: “Everyone that applies will be included, even if they’re not selected as one of the final five. Everyone will be sent a short dance to learn that has a moment at the end where each household can showcase their creative sides. These submissions will then be included in our digital distribution, using the hashtag #goggledanceus”

“It should be a really fun thing to do. We’re hoping people get dressed up, get creative and get dancing! The idea is to get loads of people having a boogie and sharing with their local community and their local theatre. They’ll be able to showcase their talents for the world!”

SJT artistic director, Paul Robinson, says: “When Wayne first came to us with the idea for #goggledance, we knew we couldn’t say no! It’s one of the most innovative, inclusive and exciting dance projects we’ve seen in a long time. We’re delighted to be able to bring it to Scarborough.”

If you want to  take part in #goggledance, email goggledance@sjt.uk.com by Saturday, August 8. Please include a short video introduction to you, your family and anyone else who will be there on filming day, plus the view from the window from where you will be watching and the room that you will be in.

“It’s not essential, but if you have a talent, whether it’s dancing, singing or playing a musical instrument, include it in your video submission,” advises Wayne.

Live performances will take place on August 22 and the films will be available online on the VOXED and SJT Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Tik Tok accounts.

For more information, go to: sjt.uk.com/event/1048/goggledance or voxeddancetheatre.com.

Did you know?

VOXED artistic director Wayne Parsons is a director, choreographer and movement director with more than 15 years’ experience of working in dance and theatre.

He graduated from London Contemporary Dance School before embarking on a performance career that spanned 13 years, working for Sydney Dance Company, Richard Alston Dance Company and the National Dance Company of Wales.

As a choreographer, Wayne regularly makes for his own company VOXED, formerly Wayne Parsons Dance, touring work across the UK and abroad. In theatre, he has choreographed shows at Shakespeare’s Globe, Theatre Royal Stratford East and Hampstead Theatre.

“VOXED creates work that is, at its heart, all about storytelling,” he says. “Our aim is to bring people together through the shared experience of dance. Whether it be through our indoor work, our outdoor work or our participation projects, we aim to reflect the world we live in and the stories we share through the work we do.”