Protègèm Dance Company aims is to support, nurture and encourage young dancers talents and to provide them with performance opportunities.
The dancers audition for their places and train for 2hrs a week during term time. Seniors (year 8-10) Elite (year 11- uni age)
Many of our past (&present) Company members have successfully gained places on prestigious dance college and uni courses and have achieved this by learning a variety of dance styles during their training including street dance, musical theatre, theatre craft, contemporary dance and the members are fast-tracked through exams alongside their training.
The variety of dance venues we have performed at over the years, including 'in the round' at Royal Albert Hall, 'open air' at fete's, local and west end stages etc provides our dancers with lots of experience.
The Junior Company is dedicated to progressing the talents of 8 – 12 year olds and providing them with performance opportunities.
Their training is structured the same as the main Company, but slightly less intense! currently training for an average of 2 hours a week.
Street takes any form of popular music – from pop to hip hop – and choreographs routines to the beats. Street is what you see on all the music channels and Top of the Pops. Some of the most successful pop acts have made it big by combining Streetdance routines with their tunes and lyrics.
Street derives from Freestyle/disco is modern, funky and energetic. From the moment John Travolta stepped onto the dance floor in the 1970s in the film 'Saturday Night Fever'. Freestyle/Disco has no preset sequence of moves, it just depends where the music takes you. It's self-expressive, diverse and a dance for all ages.
Protègèm offers street jazz classes to all ages, and it has always been a very popular dance style at the school.
Keep Fit / Street Jazz. Keep fit and learn modern dances in a fun, friendly and relaxed enviroment.
Adult Tap Class. Whether you are a beginner or a returner to tap, everyone is welcome.
Adults have the option to take IDTA exams and perform in shows.
This classical style of expressive movement has something to offer for everyone. Ballet dates back to the 17th century. The conventional steps, grace and fluidity of movement are still found in Ballet today.
Ballet has a technique which is the foundation of all dance. Young pupils begin by learning basic steps, usually following a theme, eg 'fairies'. Posture, expression, poise and discipline is encourged from the very first ballet class. Technique and vocabulary gradually expands as pupils develop in age and through the grades.
Protegem is proud to have encouraged so many teenagers to take up Ballet, whether it be for recreation or to assist them into getting into college, we are not strict on weekly tights and leotards, just strict on making our pupils feel confident and to attend a class which they otherwise would not consider.
If you are considering starting ballet at an older age, leggings and leotards/fitted top with hair tied back is perfect attire to make you appropriate for class!
Contemporary dance is the name given to a group of 20th century concert dance forms. It is a style derived from Ballet and Modern dance. Contemporary is very varied and continually developing, at Protègèm we mainly train in 'release' based contemporary dance.
Protègèm is delighted to be in the position to offer GCSE Dance following the AQA syllabus. This means students have the opportunity, through Protègèm, to take a Nationally recognised qualification, in some cases earlier than if they chose to take it at school.
By choosing to take it with Protègèm, it frees up another option, when choosing GCSE's to take at school. Students are required to be committed to independent study, as their weekly GCSE class is not enough time to gain a good grade at this level. It is however an exciting and varied course, incorporating appreciation, performance and choreography and of course theatre trips!
At Protegem, we take students on the course in the May before they enter Year 9 at school - and they will have achieved the GCSE by the May of the following year!
Our boys classes are very fun and energetic, encorporating the technique of street dance (rhythm, spatial awareness, performance, presentation and co-ordination) with tricks and stunts thats currently all the rage. The boys get to take exams and perform in shows and we are really looking forward to taking them to competition in the future!
We currently offer a boys only class on Tuesdays.
Tap is rhythm – rhythm is tap.
Its origins are many and varied. Americans claim its origin dates from the African Jazz age. The Irish stake their claim to the Jigs and Step Dancing. The English relate back to northern Clog Dancers but whichever one chooses to believe,
Tap is as popular today as it was in the heyday of the great Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly musicals. Evergreen shows, 42nd Street and Crazy For You, and the more recent Stomp and Tap Dogs highlight the great diversities of style and music in tapping.
Tap is great fun and perfect if you like to make lots of noise!
Protègèm's MTC class is dedicated to providing quality performing arts training in the three disciplines: Dance, Drama, Singing / Music training. Students are encouraged to take the IDTA'S new Musical Theatre examinations.
Attending performing arts classes encourages the development of co - ordination, correct posture, communication skills, confidence and discipline. Skills and technique learned in these classes are not only linked with the specific performing arts disciplines (dance/drama/singing) but are also used throughout life.
The most important point about our MTC class is that its full of encouragement, fun and laughter!