EXCITEMENT is building at a Tameside dance school as it gears up for a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Twenty-six dancers from Kirsten’s Dance Academy, based in Mossley, will be performing at an NFL football game in Miami.
They are among 157 students from schools across the UK who, after months of hard work and training, will depart from Heathrow Airport on December 8 to spend five days in the popular part of the United States of America.
The talented students will perform live both pre-game and at half-time at the world famous Miami Dolphins Hard Rock Stadium, alongside the official Dolphins Cheerleaders, in front of a stadium audience of 63,000 people and a TV audience of around 20 million.
The trip will also involve a VIP beach party with a top Miami DJ, a tour of the Hard Rock Stadium, a formal red carpet dinner on the eve of the performance, and an intense rehearsal programme.
Students from five schools across the UK came together at Kirsten’s Dance Academy, at its studio space in Woodend Mill, recently to rehearse for the big performance by learning a five-minute dance routine.
TV personality and TikTok star Tom Malone, a former Pro-Excel student, turned up at the rehearsal to speak to and mentor the group – much to the excitement of the students.
Kirsten Swift, principal at Kirsten’s Dance Academy, said: “The excitement is through the roof! We are so proud that we’ve been able to offer this once-in-a-lifetime experience for our dancers.
“We are taking 26 dancers who will dance alongside the Miami Dolphin Cheerleaders. What an experience! They have worked so hard and made me the proudest principal ever!
“Thank you so much to Pro-Excel for this amazing opportunity! Bring on Miami.”
The opportunity has arisen through an initiative pioneered by Pro-Excel, a Manchester-based organisation bringing together young people from diverse backgrounds to create social change through dance and sport.
Liam O’Reilly, founder of Pro-Excel, said: “There are so many pressures on our young people today, from social media, world news, climate change and the unprecedented impact of Covid on their emotional and social development.
“Pro-Excel’s Dance Miami 23 has been a huge operational and logistical undertaking for our team. Now the hard work becomes reality and seeing the faces, drive and enthusiasm of our students in rehearsals is incredibly inspiring.
“This project is about empowering young people to realise how special and talented they really are.”