Local dance schools from across the North West have united at The Brindley Theatre, Runcorn, for One Small Step, a four-day show that has raised £5,600 for life-saving cancer research.
Now in its sixteenth year, the event has grown tremendously. Starting out as a single show in 2001, One Small Step has raised more than £50,000 for local charity North West Cancer Research.
Each year, the dancing extravaganza gives around 16 dance schools and local theatre & choir groups the chance to showcase the best of its performing arts talent.
This year, students from A1 Dance, Hot Steppers, Sarah Royle School of Dance, Alexandra Jane School of Dance, HEARTS, Katie Glover School of Dance, Centre Stage School of Dance, ELLA Performance Group, Megastars, Young Vocalise, Willacy’s Dance, North Liverpool Dance Academy and Theatreworks took to the Brindley stage to raise funds.
Each year is a hotbed of up and coming stars and past shows have included celebrities such as Nicola Roberts from Girls Aloud.
Graeme Scragg started the event when his auntie Kath Shorter was diagnosed with cervical cancer. Since then he has dedicated his time and effort to create a variety of events that have raised money for cancer research.
Graeme said: “This was another successful year. All the performers worked extremely hard to rehearse and put on a great show.
“The great thing with One Small Step is that it showcases everything within dance and performing arts. This year’s event featured contemporary dance schools, performing arts centres and even the Highfield Male Voice Choir.
“Since I started the fundraising, I had a target of raising £50,000 for North West Cancer Research. Now I’ve hit it, I think it’s time to re-evaluate my target and strive for even more.”
North West Cancer Research has committed to funding more than £13million worth of cancer research based across the North West over the next five years. Most recently it has provided funding boosts for research projects focusing on neuroblastoma, a rare childhood cancer and melanoma, one of the deadliest forms of skin cancer.
Alastair Richards, CEO, North West Cancer Research, said: “Graeme has shown a huge support to the charity over the years.
“One Small Step seems to grow bigger and better every year and both the performers and the audience thoroughly enjoy the show. The amount raised since the show first started is staggering and the whole charity would like to extend thanks to both Graeme and everyone involved in the show.”
The show will return to Brindley Theatre next year and will run from Wednesday 30th May to Saturday 2nd June. Event details and tickets can be found nearer to the time on the Brindley Theatre website www.thebrindley.org.uk.