THE Brewery’s prestigious Dance Platform Festival runs from next Monday, March 20, until Friday, March 24, with more than 200 young people from 30 local schools taking part in workshops and classes led by professional dancers.

New for the festival this year is the first ever Dance (in) Vision, a special event devoted to the special art of creating dance for the screen.

It will showcase films made by youth dancers and companies such as Lancaster’s Ludus Dance, Chorley Boys and District Dance Company, Hawk Dance Theatre and Blue Moose Dance.

The festival is organised by the Kendal art centre’s dance development officer Emma Thomas, a talented dancer in her own right who has toured the UK performing with some of the best companies around.

She qualified with a degree in dance in 2009 and took up her role at the Brewery in 2013 – responsible for delivering the centre’s in-house youth dance and community outreach projects

She said the popularity of the Dance Platform had rocketed during the last 10 years, becoming an important fixture on the calendar.

“The festival demonstrates the wealth of young talent from across the area performing diverse styles ranging from folk dance to street dance, contemporary and everything in between,” she said. “It is an inspiring celebration of this unique art form from inception to performing on a professional stage in front of a live audience.”

* Box office 01539-725133.