Workshop Day
Saturday 19th October 2024
This year, City Clickers aren't running a workshop day, and we were so sad about this that we decided to do it ourselves! A full day of workshops, clog and step dance fun, food and friendship! Tickets cost £40 and include all tuition, teas and coffees, and a soup and cake lunch in finest clog workshop tradition.
We're also excited to announce that we have an online option available for the Advanced/Intermediate class with Toby Bennett! This will be on zoom, and tickets for this option are £30, which will include access to some recordings afterwards, and music files sent in advance for use during practice sections on the day.
Times (BST!):
09.30 Arrival with teas and coffees available
10.00 Welcome and warm up
10.15 Session 1
11.30 Coffee break
11.45 Session 2
12.45 Lunch
14.00 Session 3
15.15 Coffee break
15.45 Workshop showcase
16.15 Finish
The workshop day will take place at Theale Green School, Church St, Theale, RG7 5DA. We're 5 minutes drive from M4 junction 12, and easy to find!
We're really excited about the classes on offer! Read more below, then click through to our booking form to secure your place! Please note this event will only run if we get enough bookings by the end of Sun 6th October, so book your place without delay! Please feel free to email info@thealetattoo.co.uk
with any questions.
Classes
Beginners: Hornpipe Steps in the North East Style with Jane Sheard and musician Jethro Anderson
Jane will teach a neat little set of North East Hornpipe steps devised for beginners, with an emphasis on learning useful skills to form an underpinning of any clog dancer's vocabulary. This is a 6 step hornpipe routine in the North East style, devised for beginners. The workshop is for dancers with some step experience but not necessarily a hornpipe. There will be heel drops, catch backs and maybe a slice or two and each step ends with the same 'finish'. The repeat patterns of the North East Hornpipe allow for extra practice to improve your basic clog skills (and should prove useful to those who have already learned to shuffle). Learn these six steps, add some style and dance to some lovely tunes played by Jethro Anderson.
Clogs/hard soled shoes. There will be a limited number of clogs to borrow.
Improvers: Marley Waltz with Robynne Wood and musician Nigel Rainer
A relaxed workshop aimed at improvers using the Waltz routines of Anna Marley of the Dancing Marleys' fame. A simple yet lively routine danced with some duet aspects but no need to worry about bringing a friend! The teaching of this workshop will evolve with the dancers to become a true Vaudeville style routine involving some of the rewarding Marley eccentricities.
ROBYNNE WOOD started clog dancing at the tender age of 11, growing up in the ranks of Padiham Panache, specialising in the dances of Anna Marley, and joined The Lancashire Wallopers in 2007. She is the most recent addition to the ranks of three-time Champions at the Lancashire & Cheshire Clog Competitions following last year’s win. Robynne is still loyally fond of the Marley dances but enjoys the Wallopers’ focus on Sam Sherry and dances from Lancashire which forms the bigger part of her dance career. She is an experienced and patient teacher who hopes to share her love of the Marley dances and has a keen focus on preserving style whilst enjoying yourself.
Intermediate: Ridgeway Waltz with Ridgeway Step Clog and musician Tom Bell-Richards
This is a dance by Sue Crick, now retired from Ridgeway Step Clog.
The original inspiration for the dance was a City Clickers workshop given by Alex Fisher. Sue took these waltz steps, modifying some and creating some of her own. She then choreographed the dance to give us this beautiful, flowing and unique clog waltz. It consists of 7 steps and will suit dancers of an intermediate standard. Joan Monks and Laura Hubbard will teach and demonstrate.
Advanced/Intermediate: Stepping in different rhythms with Toby Bennett and musician Ben Potton
A workshop exploring dancing in rhythms less commonly used in traditional clog/stepping.
Toby will teach a short sequence of slip jig steps (9/8) to the tune Old Wife of Coverdale (the version of the tune with the missing beat!), and will explore dancing to 3/2 hornpipes. We’ll also have a go stepping in a wonky meter like 5 or 7! The workshop will be a mixture of learning steps (some of them taken from the routine danced at the Sidmouth Step Ceilidh) and putting together your own step patterns to different rhythms.
Ben Potton (demon fiddler from the band Jigfoot) will be serving up some delicious tunes for us.
Clogs or hard shoes.
Booking Form
Please email info@thealetattoo.co.uk if you have any questions.
