Creativity in the face of adversity was celebrated at Islington Arts and Media School last night when a choreographer paid a visit to talk about his career in dance.
Having entered the industry at the age of 22, Sir Matthew Bourne choreographed a wave of hit dance adaptations including Edward Scissorhands, Mary Poppins and Sleeping Beauty.
Sir Matthew praised the Turle Road school’s young dancers – who performed on the evening – and offered to send in professionals from his company to run workshops.
Headteacher Susan Service opened the evening by telling the audience of the “severe cuts” facing educators next year and the “negative impact” this may have on the arts in schools.
“We cannot imagine a world where pupils lose their entitlement to be taught mathematics or science, but nationally we allow arts education to be marginalised almost to extinction.
“Sir Matthew’s lecture affirms our school’s commitment to the debate of arts education in our schools today.”
The event was attended by more than a hundred guests and raised funds towards extra-curricular activities for students.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here