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Published on: Tuesday July 20, 2021

300 young people aged 16-30 will be offered the chance to perform at a variety of events in 2022 including the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games Opening and Closing Ceremonies

As lead delivery partner of Critical Mass 2022, DanceXchange is proud to announce the opening of applications for this bold and ambitious project.  Young people are invited to be a part of a dance and movement collective where participants will learn new dance styles, meet other young dancers and work with professional dancers to create and participate in a wide variety of performances.

Critical Mass 2022 will form a disabled and non-disabled dance crew that will perform at events across the West Midlands including:

  • the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games Opening and Closing Ceremonies
  • the opening show of the Birmingham 2022 cultural programme
  • Birmingham International Dance Festival 2022
  • Live Sites around the city during the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games

Join a Summer Camp this August

Sessions and rehearsals will take place across the West Midlands, with a range of Summer Camps taking place from this August where participants can find out more about the project and begin their journey with this exciting project.

Raidene Carter, Executive Producer for Culture Programme and Live Sites at Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games said:

“This August, we look forward to welcoming hundreds of young people to our Summer Camps and beginning this unique journey together – I encourage all of those interested to sign up online today.

“This is a truly once in a lifetime opportunity for young people from across the West Midlands to be involved in some of the biggest events to ever take place in our region.

“We are on the look out for a truly diverse collective who represent Birmingham’s vibrant communities with an enthusiasm for creating memorable moments for spectators to enjoy on a regional, national and international scale.”

Summer Camps will take place across the region including Birmingham city centre, Selly Oak, Leamington Spa, Shrewsbury, Walsall, Wolverhampton, Coventry and Worcester.

Alex Henwood, Head of Participation at DanceXchange, the Birmingham based dance organisation that is lead delivery partner for Critical Mass, added:

“We’re working to make Critical Mass 2022 a truly welcoming, empowering and fully accessible project and we’re so excited to be launching our Critical Mass Summer Camps.

“Participants don’t need to have any previous dance experience and we are particularly keen to hear from young people who self-identify as disabled and/or from Black, Asian, and mixed ethnic backgrounds.

“The Summer Camp programme will be a mixture of online and in person sessions and we recommend that participants take part in at least one of each type to get the full Critical Mass experience.”

Click Here for more about the Project

Application can be made by completing this simple sign up form.   You can find a full range of answers to frequently asked questions here

 

Critical Mass 2022 is a unique collaboration between Arts Connect, Birmingham 2022, DanceXchange and the Dance Development Leaders Group (DDLG), a dedicated network of 70+ dance organisations across the West Midlands who are passionate about developing dance participation.
The project is a part of the Birmingham 2022 culture programme and made possible thanks to generous support from Spirit of 2012, the London 2012 legacy funder that invests in projects which help people feel better about themselves, others and their communities.
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