April 17th 2013 - first session back after Easter break - dance and routine practice

At the start of the session we did a warm up to get our blood flowing, stretch our muscles and heart rate going.

We began to practice our wizard of oz  routine in which we concentrated on our rainbow routine.

At the end end of the session we practiced our amazing finale!

Sing a rainbow

Today the group started the lesson by warming up with a dance designed to stretch out the muscles in the upper body.

Stretching our upper bodies

Then the group practiced their Makaton signing rainbow song where we are including signs like this one;

Sign for yellow

Made 2 Dance contiued with learning their Rainbow song choreography which incorporates movement  Makaton signing. The idea was to learn the Makaton signing which we learnt a few weeks ago and adapt and change the signing by enhancing the movement and making it bigger so they could perfrom for the Wizard of Oz. Made 2 Dance repeated the dance and also broke down the movement very slowly to encorage the group to improve their movement memory. The Diverse Dance teachers ensured that everyone was able to demostrate the dance and tested the group in smaller groups to perfrom to each other. The Diverse Dance Teachers also think its really important to swap the lines of people so everyone gets a chance to stand at the front, they rotate the lines to make sure that everyone can see the teachers and also a great way for the young people to improve their confidence and it not be the same people always standing at the front of the class.

Once the group had the Rainbow song choreography set in stone we finished the last section of the rock n roll dance which was a great way to finish the term with lots of leap frogging and flips.

That hand first

First the group went through their warm up, one member describes: I  move  my hand  and  foot  now.

We worked on improving our co-ordination to become better dancers by focusing on using opposite arms and legs at the same time.

The group then worked on their finale for the upcoming performance of The Wizard of Oz. This particular dance incorporates a lot of rock 'n' roll movements, which are fast and exciting to do and watch! It also involves a lot of pair work so the dancers can work together and learn new skills

The dancers learnt some new moves and improved their co-ordination individually and in pairs and practicing the finale of the next show has got all the dancers really exciting about performing again.

Signing the night away

Rathbone Made 2 Dance Group came in with lots of great energy for the class today and were extremely focused. The group took part in a rigourous warm up that got their hearts pumping to the sounds of remixed Wizard of Oz songs. Made 2 Dance then worked in partners and took it in turns to mirror each others movement. The aim of this is to improve their memory technique and also engages co-operation, concentration and imagaination. The group had to really develop using their hands and motifs using just their arms and feet. This really tested some of the young people as the temptation to use their feet was very strong. After the break we sat down to listen to the Teachers recent trip to Leicester, she talked about her going to the National Networking Day for Dance, Deaf and Disabled People which was run by Foundation for Communty Dance. Andrea one of theTeachers from Diverse Dance Studios was really impressed by some of the talks and got some inspiration for the group. Andrea wanted to share the work of Mark Smith who runs Deaf Men Dancing Company and the group watched a Youtube clip of one of his workshops to get some inspiration.The group then learnt the Makaton signing for The Rainbow Song. Which was then extended and developed into a dance that the group will be perfroming for their next show.

Filming our support

Rathbones dance group wanted to show there true colours, funny side support and talents to red nose day. The group spent the evening practising the routine ready to be filmed. The group put on their smiles and their red noses to support Comic relief. Rathbone  and Made 2 dance have decided to give their sub money to show their support to comic relief and they hope it goes towards helping other people. The video will be up soon for you to look at so watch this space

Rock n Roll the night away

Tonight was Made 2 Dance first week back after half term, the group enjoyed the first half of the session giving feedback from their most recent theatre to trip to see the pantomime version of Wizard of Oz. Which lead to some great discussion and ideas for the group. Made 2 Dance are getting very excited about their production, in fact the young person that is playing Dorothy brought in her shoes she brought from the internet to show the group, they were all very excited.

Aren't they just beautiful

We then shifted our focus to something slightly different and the group have decided to do a funny dance and video for Comic Relief. Made 2 Dance teachers taught the group some Rock N Roll. There was certainly lots of laughing, spinning, sliding, lifting and clapping. The group LOVED doing Rock N Roll. Its amazing how much fun it is. So make sure you watch our Video Clip which will hopefully be up just in time for Comic Relief. Make sure you get your red nose!!!!

Follow the yellow brick road.....

Last week during the half term holiday Rathbone went on a trip to Catford Broadway Theatre to see The Wizard of Oz,  created by Blue Star productions in a pantomime version of the musical. We met at Rathbone Office in West Norwood and made our way to Catford. It was a bitterly cold day but the group were in good spirits and looking forward to a trip to the theatre. We managed to get a quick bite to eat and made our way to our seats. The theatre was full of other schools and youth groups cheering and singing along to the music. Rathbone got involved with the singing  and certainly made their voices heard with the hissing and booing at the wicked witch of the west. The Lion, Tin Man, Dorothy and Scarecrow made their way to the Wizard of Oz with some great choreography and use of lighting. The production really inspired the group and many of them said they are looking forward to creating Made 2 Dance version. So watch this space......................