For the very first time, Boys Dancing is working with inmates in Stoke Heath Young Offenders Institution in Shropshire. David McKenna is leading the dance-making and at the end of the project we will have a film to show for the project made by film-maker Chris Bradley. Watch this space!

David McKenna’s daily blog:

Day 1

We get through security unscathed and when we arrive at the chapel where we will be rehearsing everything is ready for us, mats and two beds (made especially for the project) are set up for our use.

The lads arrive, 8 of them, and they are a little sceptical about what they have signed for. After a few games, the ice melts and we warm up, rolling and crawling across the floor on the mats followed by aerobic and stretching exercises. We eventually get onto exploring the movement possibilities on and around the two beds. The lads are amazing! They fly over them, dropping to the floor and rolling, they use them to vault over and roll underneath, missing each by inches but with total control. They love playing, creating and rehearsing and we love what they have made.

Everyone leaves feeling very positive and pleased with the focus and the effort of the young men and totally bowled over by the choreography created.

Day 2

The lads all stumble in today complaining about the pains all over their body! After another intense warm up they are good to go and remember the sequence from yesterday with ease. We refine the timing, add an extra layer to the choreography and choreograph a more interesting transition by in using some impressive lifts which they pick up in no time. These lads are very strong!

A couple of the lads have visits so we work on solos, duets and trios for the begging of the film and again the boys create really lovely work. We spend some time getting some portrait photographs which they can all take away with them and we also discus the concept and performance style, it’s a little too close to home for them and could have been received negatively. But not this group. After the first day one of the lads had written a poem for us about his emotional state when he is in his cell.

Everyone agrees that this is a great starting point for the piece and we all discus how the choreography could reflect those emotions. Another fantastic day!

Day 3

Everything has gone so well so far I am a little worried today. The lads literally crawl in on their hands and knees! “ My bodies killing me!”, “I can’t walk properly or sit down!” they say with huge frowns on their faces. But after a little persuading they tackle a warm up and groans fill the room. Once loosened up we try some assisted stretching with them which brought even louder groans but after everyone was amazed at how good their bodies felt.

Without asking they set themselves up to rehearse the choreography. Using the material they already had we created a beginning and an end to the set piece by lunch time and it was looking great. After lunch we had another two lads on visits so we looked again at solos, duets and trios together with introduction shots that would set the scene for the film.

Before leaving we took more photographs of them flying over the beds or in set up poses. We’re ready for the filming tomorrow!

Day 4

We arrived very early to get all the filming equipment through security which with help of the education staff went quickly! Thanks Dean! We set up in no time and were ready for the lads when they arrived only to find that one of the lads was in the process of being shipped off to another prison! OMG, I’m going to have to learn his role, get kitted up in prison clothes and take his role. We waited for as long as possible but no word, so I start to learn the role only for him to walk through the doors, thank goodness! Thanks again Dean for sorting yet another problem out, you have definitely been our guardian angel on the project.

We warm up again and the lads join in and the grunts from yesterday are non-existent today. Progress or just nerves I think to myself? They bust out loads of energy during every take of the filming and after the 8th run through patience begins to run thin but with a little pleading on my behalf we get every shot we were after! Again after lunch we lose a lad, his visit from the previous afternoon had been cancelled at the last minute and rescheduled for today, (working here you get a real sense of constant last minute changes where the inmates and some prison workers, are the last to know) therefore move forward filming the solos, duets, and trios, they look absolutely amazing! I hope we can still use the shots, ( there may be a problem because we showed off their tattoos on their chests), we will see.

Everyone left feeling very positive, the lads, staff, management and the artists and we are all looking forward to seeing the resulting edit of the film. My final thoughts on been artistic lead on this prison project are that if another one came available I would take it without a second thought, the whole experience has been amazing! I have definitely grown as an artist and a human being. Well done everyone involved!

One of the finest memories of the week- we let the lads choose their own music to rehearse to and one of the lads chose Cher/ Do You Believe In Love to which all of the other lads instantly started to sing and jig about! WHO KNEW?!!