8th February 2021

Hiya, welcome back to the DU dance (NI) steering group blog! We thought we could share what we’ve been getting up to during this lockdown from hobbies, learning new skills, spending time with family and keeping in touch with other friends and loved ones and of course, dancing have all been so important for us during this lockdown.

I think everyone has been finding this lockdown a little more difficult than the previous for various reasons, however sharing what has been bringing us joy may help inspire and motivate anyone who is struggling to get that motivation and may give you a few ideas of new things you could try to bring you joy and keep you occupied during this lockdown.

As you can see from the photos below, we’ve enjoyed learning new and working on old hobbies such as baking, embroidery, sewing, painting and reading.

We’ve also been trying to look after our physical health by going on walks, getting fresh air and dancing on zoom classes and learning dances from TikTok and Youtube, I have even made a DIY barbell using concrete and a steel bar as the gyms are shut! Looking after our physical health and getting up and moving has also helped our mental health. Looking after our mental health has been just as important which is why some of us have been meditating, doing yoga, working on mindfulness and gratitude as well as incorporating more self-care into our lives such as warm baths and skincare routines, one of our steering group members has also gotten into tarot card reading which has helped her with guidance and advice for situations, bringing her peace of mind.

Staying in touch with loved ones over facetime, text, calls as well as spending time with those in our house (including our furry friends) has also been so important for our mental health.

These are just a few examples of how the steering group have been keeping busy and spending our time over lockdown.

7th May 2020

Big congratulations to our newest Young Ambassadors Anastazja Mikczarek and Alisha Platt! Anastazja and Alisha will be joining Rebecca in the role.

Congratulations as well to Amy McCrellis and Keila Platt who join the Youth Steering Group!

Welcome to your new roles, everyone!

Some of our Steering Group members got creative on Tik Tok after our January meeting. Check it out here:

And keep an eye on DU Dance (NI) social media for some online challenges…

5th December 2019

Thanks and Congratulations!

Well done to all members of the Steering Group for their active role in planning the Day of Dance and for all their leadership and hard work.

The day itself was a big hit!

What’s next?

With the Day of Dance marking the end of another term – and another year – it’s never too early to start thinking about how we can make 2020 even bigger and better! Our next meeting will be in the new year when we can discuss some residentials we have planned for you.

26th September 2019

Hiya, welcome back to the DU Dance (NI) steering group blog! I’m a part of the company’s youth engagement project Alternative Energies and have been for six years. Within these six years I have been given so many amazing opportunities that helped me grow as a dancer as well as a person.

Every year we get multiple chances a year to perform, from the yearly Unanimous platform that gives dancers from all over the country the chance to showcase their work to other events and DU Dance projects like Fallen, BelFest and culture night where we get to show what we’ve been working on as well as meet people from different cultures and backgrounds that we normally wouldn’t have met.

Over a year ago I was given the opportunity to volunteer at the Alternatives which is the younger group. Helping with the little ones has taught me independence and responsibility and its been a lot of fun and very rewarding to work with them.

I was also given the opportunity to join the steering group four years ago. In the steering group we give feedback and suggest ideas for the company and events that we think would be beneficial for the groups. Being in the steering group has improved my confidence in meeting new people, voicing my opinions and public speaking which are now such important skills in other aspects of my life. From the steering group I was then given the opportunity to be youth ambassador for DU Dance (NI) earlier in the year where I am excited to be more involved in the company.

I have been given other opportunities such as Alternative Energies ‘Not Alone’ film where I got experience with filming, but we also got to discuss topical subjects in our lives, in this case it was bullying and inclusivity.

Over these six years I have really grown into the person I am today, thanks to all of these opportunities; I’ve had a lot of fun along the way and I hope to be involved with the company for a long time.

– Rebecca, DU Dance (NI) Young Ambassador

25th February 2019

Public consultation now open
Deadline to have your say: 4pm, Friday 22 March 2019
Draft Strategic Framework for the Development of the Arts, 2019-2024 – Read the Young People’s Version here

The Arts Council of Northern Ireland (ACNI) has released its five-year plan for developing the arts over the next five years and there is a chance to have your say. Click here to read the Young People’s Version and let the ACNI know what you think by:

– Emailing strategy@artscouncil-ni.org
– Taking part in the Facebook discussion
– Tweeting @ArtsCouncilNI

You have until Friday 22 March to get your voice heard.

31st January 2019

Member’s blog

Hello and welcome to the first blog post on the DU Dance (NI) Steering Group page. We decided that the members of the Steering Group should write about their experiences as a part of DU Dance more specifically our experiences in Alternative Energies and Sutemos.

I’m part of Sutemos and have been for over three years. In this time I’ve made lots of new friends from different schools that I probably wouldn’t have met otherwise, this has helped me realise that it’s good to know people from different places. It has also boosted my confidence with all the performances we do, my favourite performances that we do are DU Dance’s annual Unanimous  – this is because we get to go down to Belfast and perform with lots of different people from other groups and we get to see what they have worked on in a theatre with a proper stage.

We also discuss issues that young people face for example last term we made three different short films that we created ourselves my group focused on bullying and we had a great time planning the dance for it and filming it. I know that I ever need to talk to someone I can and it will be a safe space to do so. The classes are always good fun and I really enjoy going to them every week. All in all I really enjoy being part of Sutemos.

Amelie, January 2019

Day of Dance

Congratulations to all members of the Steering Group for their active role in planning, helping to run “the most fun” workshops and introducing all the groups that took part in our annual “Day of Dance”  including for the first time this year our younger groups. A thanks to Claire Bailey MLA, Green Party for sponsoring DU Dance (NI) to enable us to use Parliament Buildings Stormont – we raised the roof!

December 2018

Away Day

Our Youth Steering Group had a great weekend away in Bushmills in June.  Thank you to Youth Hostel Association of Northern Ireland for facilitating this through their Gather programme.  The Steering Group worked on future planning for the company, a campaign to save the arts and also enjoyed the sun and the beach.  We plan to meet up again in Belfast for another planning day in October and to see a performance if we can.

September 2018