School of Sport and Health Sciences

the PE students standing in a row

PE students lead inspiring dance workshop

A group of first and second year students from our Physical Education BA(Hons) with QTS  visited GCSE Dance students at Drapers’ Academy in Romford.

The students performed their dance, titled ‘Beneath’, to a group of over 50 young female students and then lead a practical workshop with the school’s GCSE Dance students based on the content they’d watched.

students doing their routineThe choreographic intention was to communicate ideas and emotions related to the challenging lives young women in Afghanistan face since the Taliban returned to power in 2021. Key themes expressed in the dance included:

  • Oppression, restriction and submission versus anger, frustration, protest and rebellion.
  • Landays – traditional Afghani folk poems with 22 syllables and 2 lines. Typically, anonymous and shared by word of mouth, they are used as a tool of rebellion for Afghan women.
  • The story of Rahila Muska – a teenage girl who loved to write and share her poetry.  On discovering this, her brothers beat her badly.

The dance was choreographed by Senior Lecturer Lucy Pocknell and Fiona Smith, a freelance dance educator and former Brighton lecturer, in collaboration with the group. Lucy said: “The students worked really hard on their routine for this extra-curricular activity. Activities like this really help develop our students skills and confidence ready for when they graduate.”

Maria Griffin, Head of Dance, said: “A fantastic day with the Brighton dance students. The students were so engaging, knowledgeable, and creative in the workshop they designed for my GCSE dance students.

“My students loved the dance and the ideas they were given, and it was great to see their confidence and creativity develop throughout the day. The dance battle between the two group choreography’s was a great way to finish and display the amazing dances they created.

“We would love to have University of Brighton back again, to continue to inspire my young students for their next steps in potential dance careers.”

Kerry Burnett • 02/06/2023


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