As a child being raised on a film diet of “Singing In The Rain”, “The Sound Of Music” and “West Side Story”, I was lead to believe that seemingly random people spontaneously breaking into perfectly choreographed dance routines was the norm. It took me many years to realise that the reason why I hadn’t experienced this phenomena in the flesh was because the reality represented in these musicals was a bucket load of stinky hogwash. Back then, I simply didn’t understand why the plane stewards started shouting at me to sit down when I broke into “On The Good Ship Lollipop”. (I had the curly hair and everything!) Or why I ended up with bruises and a broken nose when I ran through the “Make ‘Em Laugh” routine. (… but oh boy did they laugh at me!)

So wouldn’t it be great if the reality of musicals was…. real? Well the International Dance Council has been working hard on this issue since 1982. They believe that despite the cultural significance of dance throughout human history, it is rarely prioritized in an official manner. So each year on the 29th of April, International Dance Day is celebrated. The idea behind the event is to try and attract the attention of the wider public, to the art of dance. In other words, International Dance Day is aimed at the Joe Blows of this world whose only exposure to any form of rhythmic body movement is watching a goal celebration in football.

If International Dance Day can get enough of the wider public interested in dance, then there’s still hope yet that I can get a posse of mates following me around town in a supposedly intimidating demeanour the next time I start snapping my fingers. So spread the word…. The 29th of April is International Dance Day!

Planning an event for International Dance Day? Contact the Dance Day official website

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