Dance / Contemporary dance
Celebrating 10 years of RISE Youth Dance
This year is the 10th anniversary of RISE Youth Dance – and what an eventful decade they have had.
RISE are a Bristol dance company providing training, access and progression for the city’s young dancers aged eight to 19. It’s likely that you’ve caught them at St Paul’s Carnival or the dance village at the Harbour Festival.
Recognised nationally as an excellent training ground for young dancers, they have been selected for the national youth fance festival U.Dance, three times.
is needed now More than ever
Helen Wilson founded RISE at Fairfield High School with only 11 young people and now employs dancers who have grown up with the company. Together they run four main youth classes and a trainee scheme for those aged over 18.
Helen is extremely passionate about helping to develop emerging artists. Many graduates have performed nationally and gone on to train professionally. Through forming regional partnerships, she has brought in acclaimed choreographers to produce professional level performances with the young dancers.
For a youth troupe, their high standard is unparalleled. I saw them recently as part of professional showcase events at Circomedia and at Trinity, and they were as exceptional as anyone 20 years their senior.
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Their dedication shows. In a town where professional dance training and performance is often overlooked, RISE deserved to be championed and congratulated.
Two big events for RISE in their 10th year were their REACH showcase event and St Paul’s Carnival.
REACH is important to RISE because it brings together the local community and the dance community. There is always a full and varied audience which helps with the development of dance in the city providing a high quality show to inspire young people and audience members.
For the young people involved, REACH is a fulfilling experience as it allows them to be part of the process of running an event. The young people do administration and marketing tasks, fundraise, perform and choreograph. It provides them with new skills that are vital to lots of professions in the arts.
Rise are reognised nationally as an excellent training ground for young dancers
Their 2018 event, REACH: Find Your Own Journey, was the biggest yet, with four sell out shows over three days. The first half of the show explored the idea that although we often strive for the same things, we each must find our own way. The dancers were invited to think about their own journeys, their future opportunities and the decisions they may make.
The second half of the performance celebrated the past achievements of the company and the young dancers who have been part of that journey. Previous company pieces were revived and RISE were joined by past members, many of whom are now training professionally or working as dancers, to perform together.
For the 2018 St Paul’s Carnival, RISE loved the chance to showcase the other side of themselves as the level of world styles within the company is as impressive as the contemporary style. Leeds-based Pareesha Valentina led two workshops in dancehall and costume making.
Her stunning designs and instruction allowed the leaders and young people to make beautiful and exciting costumes and we were also able to borrow some special costumes that she had made. RISE teamed up with Funk Supreme and Movema to form a troupe of more than 80 people, the biggest group at the Carnival.
https://vimeo.com/281358261
“Many times I have been asked, do you do this for a living?” Helen tells Bristol24/7. “Is this your hobby? When will you get a ‘real job’?
“In answer to them, I would never do anything else, I will always continue to develop RISE and create openings for young people in the dance world. They are our next generation, they are our next hope, and they make me so proud and I hope I make them proud.”
For more information about RISE, visit www.riseyouthdance.com. For any audition or performance inquires, email Luke.riseyd@gmail.com
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