Dancing through the Decades in Stoke-on-Trent City Centre

About

Dancing through the Decades in Stoke-on-Trent City Centre

Stoke-on-Trent City Centre BID & Appetite are excited to bring two days of family fun and entertainment to the City Centre to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee!

On Friday 3 and Saturday 4 June, a whole host of performers, DJs and dancers will be taking over the city centre to spin, slide and shimmy their way through the last 70 decades. Bring your friends and family to join us over the bank holiday weekend for this celebration fit for royalty!

Drop-by Stoke-on-Trent City Centre (Hanley) from 11am to 5pm

Extend your day and enjoy the Jubilee Social on Piccadilly from 5pm to 11pm on both days. With city centre restaurants and bars throwing open their doors to offer an alfresco dining and drinking location whilst patrons can also enjoy the music from local DJs who will be performing on the street!

FRIDAY 3 JUNE

Become a piece of Art: Andy Warhol - Where? 1960s North. When? 11am to 5pm.

Become a piece of Art: Bridge Riley - Where? 1960s North. When? 11am to 5pm

Geek Retreat Stoke - Where? 1980s. When? 11am to 5pm

We are hosting your favourite Retro games from the 80’s. Come and join in with our family games events and we’ll teach you those you don’t know. We’ll also be holding a Rubiks cube race! Whoever can get the fastest time will be Crowned Greatest Geek of the Jubilee!

Rock n’ Roll hula hoop workshop! - by Spinsonic Circus. Where? 1950s. When? 11.30am to 12pm; 12.30pm to 1pm; 2pm to 2.30pm; 3.30pm to 4pm & 4.30pm to 5pm

You can also drop-in at any time throughout the day for hula hoop freeplay!

Make your own Flower Crown - by Cushy Paws. Where? 1970s. When? 12pm to 4pm.

Be royalty for the day and create your own flower crown with artist Cushy Paws.

Make your own Keep the Faith Badge - by Appetite. Where? 1960s South. When? 12pm to 4pm.

Make your own Queen Bee Seeds - by Ladybird Su. Where? 2010s. When? 12pm to 4pm.

At Dancing Through the Decades, Ladybird Su will be on hand to show visitors how to print their own plantable postcards with special paper with flower seeds in it.

Learn Dance Through the Decades 1950s: Swing, Jive and The Rock and Roll Stroll - by Ragroof Tea Dance. Where? 1950s. When? 12pm to 12.20pm.

Dance Through the Decades is a four-person three-hour roving performance and immersive dance event that will bring five decades of dancing to life, animating the streets of Stoke and drawing everyone into the dance. We will take your from the 1950s to the year 2000 with short performances, our trademark ’instant dance classes’ and and party-dances to keep the ball rolling. No previous dance experience needed – our expert team of DJs and dancers will guide you through a few basic steps and keep you dancing as the years roll by!

The Big Harley Davidson Rev - by Stoke Chapter UK. Where? 2000s. When? 12pm to 12.01pm; 2pm to 2.01pm; 4pm to 4.01pm.

Grow - by Kapow. Where? 2010s+. When? 12.15pm to 12.40pm

Groovy Bubble Popping Madness - by Spinsonic Circus. Where? 1960s North. When? 12.30pm to 12.55pm; 2.45pm to 3.10pm & 4.35pm to 5pm

B-Boys - by Joy Magnet. Where? 1990s. When? 12.30pm to 1pm; 2.30pm to 3pm & 4.30pm to 5pm.

These big, bouncing, b-boy breakers and their beat blasting boom box are sure to bring out the funk in everyone.

Learn Dance Through the Decades 1960s: Twist, Locomotion, Mambo & The Madison - by Ragroof Tea Dance. Where? 1960s South. When? 12.40pm to 1pm.

No previous dance experience needed – our expert team of DJs and dancers will guide you through a few basic steps and keep you dancing as the years roll by!

Raw Meats - by the Heavy Smokers. Where? 2000s. When? 1pm to 1.30pm.

Topiary Trauma - by Kitsch ‘N’ Sync. Where? 1950s. When? 1pm to 1.30pm, 2.30pm to 3pm; 4pm to 4.30pm

Meet Judy, our glamorous 1950s housewife in sunny suburbia. She enjoys baking brownies and a quiet bit of gardening on a Sunday. Judy enjoys trimming her bushes regularly but recently she has been having some trouble with her topiary…they seem to have a mind of their own!? Is she losing her marbles or does the flora and fauna have a mind of its own…who knows!? A comedy performance for all the family.

Knot - by Motionhouse. Where? 1960s. When? 1pm to 1.40pm; 3.30pm to 3.40pm.

Knot sees two female dancers using extreme physicality, complex lifts and contact choreography, to explore the many facets of human relationships through physical expression. Twisting and turning, the balance shifts from one dancer to the other as they use their physicality to express their emotions

Motionhouse is supported by Arts Council England with additional support from Warwick District Council and is a Hippodrome Associate Artist.

Baad Mutha Funkas - by Artemis. Where? 1970s. When? 2pm to 2.30pm; 4.15pm to 4.45pm.

With their giant flares and massive hair, Stag, Randy and Kid Velcro never get lost in a crowd. Straight out of the swinging sixties and seventies, with their cheesy one-liners and chat-up lines in full flow, they stilt walk through the streets interacting with the crowds.

Borneo Again - by Creature Encounters. Where? 2010s. When? 2pm to 2.30pm; 4pm to 4.30pm.

Direct from the Sumatran rainforest peddles the explorer Captain Jon Voyage on his tropical tricycle, complete with looted temple fragments and jungle specimens. Stowed away amongst the vegetation is the banana smuggling orangutan, Mr Business. Having given up the wildlife, Mr Business plans to accompany the captain as his feverish wanderlust drives him ever onward!

Learn Dance Through the Decades 1980s: Jazz Latin, Lounge, Lambada and Agadoo - by Ragroof Tea Dance. Where? 1980s. When? 2.10pm to 2.30pm.

No previous dance experience needed – our expert team of DJs and dancers will guide you through a few basic steps and keep you dancing as the years roll by!

Learn Dance Through the Decades 1990s: Vogue, Macarena, Hip Hop and Running Man - by Ragroof Tea Dance. Where? 1990s. When? 2.50pm to 3.10pm.

No previous dance experience needed – our expert team of DJs and dancers will guide you through a few basic steps and keep you dancing as the years roll by!

Bombay Baja Brass: 90s to 00s Covers - by Bombay Baja Brass Band. Where? 2000s. When? 3.30pm to 4pm.

 

SATURDAY 4 JUNE:

Get twirling & whirling with rock n roll hula hoop freeplay - by Spinsonic Circus. Where? 1950s. When? 11am to 5pm.

Bird Rave Face Painting - by Kat Durbur. Where? 1990s. When? 11am to 5pm.

Bird Rave is a family show about extraordinary birds, the choreography of nature…and rave music. Join Miss High Leg Kick and a team of artists for a celebration of wildlife, classic rave music and the ‘freedom to dance’ days of early UK rave culture

The Daily’s Classic and Retro Motor Club - Where? Cheapside Road.

When? 11am to 5pm.

Make your own Flower Crown - by Cushy Paws. Where? 1970s. When? 12pm to 4pm.

Be royalty for the day and create your own flower crown with artist Cushy Paws.

Make your own Keep the Faith Badge - by Appetite. Where? 1960s South

When? 12pm to 4pm.

Make your own Queen Bee Seeds - by Ladybird Su. Where? 2010s. When? 12pm to 4pm.

At Dancing Through the Decades, Ladybird Su will be on hand to show visitors how to print their own plantable postcards with special paper with flower seeds in it.

The Actual Reality Arcade - by Matthew Harrison. Where? 1980s

When? 11am to 5pm.

The Actual Reality Arcade is a life-sized interactive zone inspired by classic arcade games where you play for real.  Dodge barrels and lasers, build Tetris walls, shoot aliens and become Pac-Man. Physical fun for all ages to enjoy together.

Groovy Bubble Popping Madness! - by Spinsonic Circus. Where? 1960s North. When? 11am to 11.25am; 12.30pm to 12.55pm; 1.45pm to 2.10pm; 2.45pm to 3.10pm; 4.35pm to 5pm.

Get twirling & whirling with rock n roll hula hoop workshops

by Spinsonic Circus. Where? 1950s. When? 11.30am to 12pm; 12.30pm to 1pm; 2pm to 2.30pm; 3.30pm to 4pm; 4.30pm to 5pm.

Team BGee - by Fools Paradise. Where? 1970s. When? 11.30am to 12pm; 1.30pm to 2pm; 3.30pm to 4pm.

Come along, sing-along and boogie-along with these popular pop icons as they parade and perform their funky love classics. Laugh as they flirt and dance with the wonderful world around them.

Oompa Party Band

Where? 2000s. When? 11.30am to 12pm; 1pm to 1.30pm; 2.30pm to 3pm.

The ultimate nostalgia trip, The Oomparty Band are a fresh and modern take on the traditional Bavarian oompah band. Mixing together electronic music, live trumpets, trombones and percussion, they perform unique covers of huge club classics, massive throwback anthems and noughties pop hits that are certain to keep you dancing.

We Meet Again - by ID Dance Co. Where? 1950s. When? 11.45am to 11.50am; 1.30pm to 1.35pm; 3pm to 3.05pm; 4pm to 4.05pm.

So much has happened since they last saw each other….so much uncertainty, so much fear, so much loneliness. Now, they meet again. ID Dance Co. is a dance company based in Leicester, UK. They explore how different bodies and minds can dance together. 

Hollie and the Heels - Where? 1950s. When? 12pm to 12.30pm; 1pm to 1.30pm; 2pm to 3pm.

A wandering acoustic act with the WOW factor. A live human jukebox! Quirky, spontaneous and interactive. Bursting with personality, talent and feel good factor. Holly and the Heels specialise in taking requests, playing outstanding versions of your favourite songs literally wherever you like. No wires, No electric, Just instant fun.

Bird Rave - by Miss High Kick. Where? 1990s. When? 12pm to 12.45pm; 2pm to 2.25pm.

Bird Rave is a family show about extraordinary birds, the choreography of nature…and rave music. Join Miss High Leg Kick and a team of artists for a celebration of wildlife, classic rave music and the ‘freedom to dance’ days of early UK rave culture.

Bees! - by Artizani. Where? 2010s. When? 12.15pm to 12.45pm; 2.15pm to 2.45pm; 4.15pm to 4.45pm.

An installation of six hives, all hiding a unique interior world – a multi-sensory experience with a surprise in every hive.

Dandyism - by Patrick Ziza Dance. Where? 1960s South. When? 1pm to 1.30pm; 3pm to 3.30pm.

“Dandyism” is inspired by the gentlemen of the Congo. The appropriation of the 18th Century French and English Dandy’s flamboyance by African men was a defence and a provocation against slavery, described by some as a resistance movement.  By the 1960’s African Dandyism had become a phenomenon. “Dandyism” is an expression of individuality.  It is a statement of how African culture has and continues to influence Western culture and it says “we are here”.

Bling N Ting - by Swank. Where? 1990s. When? 1.15pm to 1.45pm; 3.15pm to 3.45pm; 4.30pm to 5pm.

Bling and her pal Ting are into anything that sparkles and are full of chat. Complete with complicated handshakes, high fives and coolio greetings, naff street dance routines, break dancing, parkour and gangster rap, these girls are classic British caricatures of ‘yoooff culture innit’.

Workshop: Be a Dandy for the day - by Patrick Ziza Dance. Where? 1960s South. When? 1.30pm to 2pm.