Facing the Music
Dance is the way to do it
This week there is an extravaganza of dance up at the Church Hill Theatre. Let’s Face the Music and Dance is both a celebration of all things rhythmic and a huge personal statement for its founder, Janice Bruce.
The previous edition of the show wowed its first audiences back in 2014, but it wasn’t just about the grooves and the moves. That first year, Janice Bruce used it to raise a rather astounding £7,500 for Leukaemia Care. This year she’s back. And she’s aiming for £10,000.
“When my mum died in 2010 I was a visual merchandise manager with John Lewis,” says Janice. “I’d worked for them for 36 years then suddenly in 2012 they decided to make all the managers redundant.
“I had been dancing and doing shows and amateur dramatics since the age of 16. So, knowing I always wanted to do something and give back, I decided to get all my friends together from shows and put on the first Let’s face the music and dance.”
That’s plenty of shows for Janice to be involved in, as the number of productions from the likes of Allegro and the Bohemians for which Janice did choreography, direction or simply took part, attest. Even just the shows which are reviewed on Æ is a good number.
And she now gets pleasure from now her new day job of choreographing couples for their first Wedding dance. “This gives me so much pleasure helping two people so much in love,” she says.
hard work
Still that first show took nearly the whole year to organise not to mention a lot of hard work and frustration. But the result, with the £7,500 raised for Leukaemia Care, was easily worth. So much so, that Janice is back.
Lets Face the Music and Dance in Rehearsal. Pic Ric Brannan
“It was meant to be a one off,” she admits. “But it was so rewarding and successful I recharged my batteries to do it again.”
So with the 50-strong cast of singers and dancers, the band and all the helpers are doing this for free – “everyone knows someone or has lost someone to Cancer” says Janice – things are looking for her to reach her target of £10,000 this week.
Audiences can expect music and dance from the stage and screen. The show has six sections, starting with Glitz and Glam and the likes of One night only and We are what we are before getting all Taptastic with a shuffle along 42nd St, Stepping Out and We’re In The Money.
Then all gets a little After Dark – think Little Shop of Horrors the Addams Family and, of course, Thriller – before sampling the Danger of the likes of Bond, Mission Impossible and the Matrix.
To finish it off, it all gets Bright and Beautiful with some of that Colour My World, Jai Ho and the ever green Who will buy? before rounding out with a full cracker of Christmas delights. Oh yes, Santa baby, all I want for Christmas is a dance with Slade and, maybe, even Wizzard!
That’s looking very good indeed for Leukaemia Care to get a healthy £10K donation at the end of the week.
Listing
Let’s Face the Music and Dance 2018
Church Hill Theatre, 33a Morningside Road, EH10 4DR
Tuesday 27 November – Saturday 1 December 2018
Evenings: 7.30pm, Matinee Sat: 2.30pm.
Tickets and details: Book here.
ENDS
