Classical Greek Dance Festival Finals

On Sunday 8 May, following the highly popular online Heats earlier in the year, we held our Finals event live at the Gordon Craig Theatre in Stevenage, Hertfordshire.

An impressive total of 593 young dancers aged 6-21 years from all over the UK competed in 15 different categories throughout the day and their energy, talent and accomplishment were very inspiring. The overall standard was impressively high and clearly showed the value of Classical Greek Dance for training all genres of dancers today.

SOLO A

1st Sailor Mullen, Mayhew School of Dance
2nd Alice Codd, Karen Blackburn Dance Academy
3rd Lauren Gardner, Music Box Dance

SOLO B

1st Lily Lewin Mayhew School of Dance
2nd Elsie Cann Mayhew School of Dance
2nd Doris Garrod Mayhew School of Dance
3rd Emilia Lane Guernsey Classical Greek
3rd Ayla Orsborn Kilburn School of Dance

Solo C

1st Matilda Lawson Zoe Pennington Dance Studio
2nd Isla Seymore Allied Schools of Dance
2nd Millie Wyatt Academy Theatre Arts
3rd Daria Budusan Mayhew School of Dance
3rd Aoife Gallagher Guernsey Classical Greek

Solo D

1st Chloe Taylor Academy Theatre Arts
2nd Emily Savage Mayhew School of Dance
2nd Tayla Mae Pickering Kilburn School of Dance
3rd Holly Pryke-Smith Karen Blackburn Dance Academy
3rd Holly McAlindon Kilburn School of Dance

Solo Premier

1st Topaz Alger Mayhew School of Dance
2nd Caitlin Garbutt Mayhew School of Dance
3rd Imogen Burn Kilburn School of Dance
3rd Bethany Tolhurst-McWatt Green Academy Theatre Arts

Duet Junior

1st Lily Lewin and Florence Henderson, Mayhew School of Dance
2nd Isla Belle Trimble and Lilac Willow Howe, Kilburn School of Dance
3rd Sailor Mullen and Elsie Cann, Mayhew School of Dance

Duet Intermediate

1st Kitty Steer and Teagan Walker, Karen Blackburn Dance Academy
2nd Eleanor Achurch and Evie Paddison, Mayhew School of Dance
2nd Emily Savage and Lexi Coggin, Mayhew School of Dance
3rd Martha Atkinson and Asha Warren, Academy Theatre Arts
3rd Skye Reilly and Amy Bartholomew, Allied Schools of Dance

Duet Senior

1st Caitlin Garbutt and Beatriz Kingsmill-Smith, Mayhew School of Dance
2nd Francesca Allen and Ariana Nedelcu, Kilburn School of Dance
3rd Hannah Digby and Ronalee Galhena, Kilburn School of Dance

Trio/Quartet Junior

1st Katie Tilakaratne, Zoe Fayed and Molly Denscombe, Kilburn School of Dance
2nd Brooke Reilly, Sophie Frame and Charlotte Murray, Allied Schools of Dance
2nd Lily Lewin, Aida Diedhiou and Florence Henderson, Mayhew School of Dance
3rd Olivia Brooks, Fearne Gibbs and Evie Rush, Academy Theatre Arts
3rd Bella Digby, Niamh Gallacher and Tifani Veg, Kilburn School of Dance

Trio/Quartet Intermediate

1st Skye Reilly, Ava Merolla, Isabelle Barry, Ellie Janeba Allied Schools of Dance
2nd Vivianna McKean, Holly Rodenhurst, Shannon Lyne and Ruby Large, Kilburn School of Dance
3rd Lexi Coggin, Molly Ferrier, Lucy Hoti and Emily Savage, Mayhew School of Dance

Trio/Quartet Senior

1st Soraya Miller, Bethany Tolhurst, McWatt Green and Agatha Swenson, Academy Theatre Arts
2nd Sian O'Keeffe, Molly Barnes and Imogen Burn, Kilburn School of Dance
3rd Caitlin Garbutt, Georgia Mackness, Evie Paddison and Beatriz Kingsmill-Smith, Mayhew School of Dance

Junior Groups

1st Academy Theatre Arts Better is Peace
2nd Kilburn School of Dance The Butterfly Ball
3rd Mayhew School of Dance The Lost Words

Intermediate Groups

1st Mayhew School of Dance, Demeter and Limos
2nd Kilburn School of Dance, A Message for Humanity
3rd Academy Theatre Arts, The Trumpets, Excite us to arms

Senior Groups

1st Mayhew School of Dance, The Formation of the Constellation of the Pleiades
2nd Kilburn School of Dance, The Planets - Our Solar System
3rd Music Box Dance, The Agon

Choreography Groups

1st Academy Theatre, Arts Out Damn Spot
2nd Music Box Dance, Return of the Jedi

Special Awards

CGDAF Junior Award, Most promising Junior Girl, Millie Wyatt, Academy Theatre Arts
CGDAF Senior Award, Most promising Senior Girl, Piper Mullen, Mayhew School of Dance
Dancing Times Cup, Most Promising Junior Boy, Cai Hoyte, Music Box Dance
Sonia Bond Shield, Most Promising Duet/Trio/Quartet Non-Winner, Francesca Allen and Ariana Nedelcu, Kilburn School of Dance
CGDAF Art Deco Costume Award Costume Inter Group, The Trumpets,  Excite us to arms, Academy Theatre Arts
Buckhurst Hill and Woodford Shield, Classical Greek Ideals, Isla Seymore, Allied School of Dance
Pauline Grant Trophy, Technical Accuracy, Bethany Tolhurst-McWatt, Green Academy Theatre Arts
Rona Hart Trophy, Most Dramatic Expression, Caitlin Garbutt, Mayhew School of Dance
Irene Mawer Trophy, Drama Inter Group, Demeter and Limos, Mayhew School of Dance
Nancy Sherwood Trophy, Nature Doris Garrod, Mayhew School of Dance
Cawadias Shield, Most Memorable S/D/T/Q Skye Reilly, Ava Merolla, Isabelle Barry, Ellie Janeba Allied Schools of Dance
Rosina Wenham Shield, Most Memorable Group Junior Group- The Butterfly Ball Kilburn School of Dance
Karen Collings Memorial Award, Musicality Lily Lewin Mayhew School of Dance
Susan Mitchell-Smith Memorial Award, Memorable portrayal of a Mythological Character, Topaz Alger, Mayhew School of Dance

The Committee would like to thank Heats Adjudicators Carol Vasko and Alison Seddon, who had the challenging task of selecting the finalists. Thanks too to June Hornby and Alison Seddon who adjudicated the Finals with great skill and sensitivity and give an account of the experience here:

"It was lovely to adjudicate the Classical Greek Finals on Sunday 8 May.  The joy of the children and students was wonderful to see, they were thoroughly enjoying the freedom of dancing on a stage again, with their friends in duets, trios and groups.  

The standard was as we have come to expect, very high, and the different styles of Classical Greek were well covered. The grooming and costumes were well suited to the chosen subject and the range from Lyrical to Athletic via Choric and Ritual was lovely to watch. The titles were explored and developed through the steps and expressions of both face and body. My sincere congratulations are extended to the teachers, dancers and their parents, not forgetting the organisation required by the committee to arrange such a lovely day."

June Hornby

"What a wonderful atmosphere at the Classical Greek Dance Festival finals at the Gordon Craig Theatre, Stevenage.  From the eager spectators queuing in the foyer to the excited dancers on stage, everyone was thrilled to be able to return to a live Classical Greek event once again. 

The hiatus caused by the pandemic had certainly not quashed the creativity of the teachers nor the talent of the dancers who produced some stunning performances. 

It was a challenge to choose the recipients of the special awards as there were so many worthy competitors and it was also a privilege to present two new awards in honour of Susan Mitchell-Smith and Karen Collings. 

This year's festival finals proved that Classical Greek Dance is alive and well and is more than relevant in today's dance world, providing a technically demanding and emotionally expressive training for the dancers and performers of the future." 

Alison Seddon

All participating schools:

• Kilburn Dance Studio
• Timestep Academy of Dance
• Sue Merrett School of Dance
• Karen Blackburn Dance Academy
• Guernsey Classical Greek
• Zoe Pennington School of Dance
• Mayhew School of Dance
• Allied Schools of Dance
• East Sussex Dance School
• Silverlee Stage School
• Music Box Dance
• The Buckhurst and Woodford School of Dancing
• Willingdon School of Dancing
• KD Dance Ltd
• Academy Theatre Arts
• Sussex Dance Studios
• North Star Academy
• Totnes School of Dance

Sincere congratulations and thanks are due to all the teachers who entered candidates for this year’s competition, and to the winners above for their outstanding performances.