Intergenerational dance project celebrates HYOC2020

Living Magazines HYOC2020 community-film

Dacorum Borough Council joined forces with Watford and Three Rivers Councils on the weekend of 12-13 December to celebrate Herts Year of Culture (HYOC2020) with a finale weekend of online creative and dance events. The three districts have been working with BEE Creative, specialist dance agency, to deliver a year-long intergenerational dance programme called #TAG.

The programme comprised of a variety of activities, including:

  • community dance and animation workshops
  • performance films
  • oral histories podcast
  • training and mentoring for dance practitioners
  • digital project using Alexa with local schools
  • photographic exhibition

The programme has involved 42 artists, 64 community workshops, 268 participants and a 10,000 plus audience – all during a pandemic and lockdowns.

Carrie Washington, Director of BEEE Creative said, ‘With the power of digital, the project has brought dance artists and communities together – everyone taking comfort in the support from others. It helped provide a creative outlet, some routine to the week, new skills, physical exercise and a sense of connection.’

The Dacorum Member Champion for Hertfordshire Year of Culture, Councillor Julie Banks, said, ‘The finale weekend of events has been a wonderful way to celebrate during the last month of 2020 Hertfordshire Year of Culture. The fact that a project such as this has still been able to happen and engage so many in Dacorum, during the pandemic has been an achievement in itself.

‘Many of our residents have benefited from the free opportunities this project has provided, enabling access to high quality, creative activities and supporting community health and wellbeing during this difficult year.

‘I’d like to express my sincere thanks to BEEE Creative and our other district partners. It is collaborations such as this which enable large-scale community projects to happen and we hope that partnerships built during this Hertfordshire Year of Culture will continue to provide further opportunities throughout the borough in 2021 and beyond.’

The finale programme of events is still available on the BEEE Creative website, where the oral history podcasts can be accessed, the final #TAG celebration film can be viewed and details can be found on how to get involved in the new Alexa digital project from home. For further information visit beee-creative.co.uk/wp/tag-finale-weekend/.