Tap dancers to taste international competition
Pair raising funds for travel to Germany
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This article was published 24/10/2019 (2185 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Two young local dancers are tapping their way to the world stage.
From Nov. 26 to 30, Cassidy Besson and Grace Welburn will travel with Team Canada to Riesa, Germany to compete in the International Dance Organization’s World Tap Championships.
Both Besson, 19, and Welburn, 14, study at the Doreen Bissett School of Dance in Transcona. The pair — who study under Ella Steele at DBSD and are both “super excited” about the upcoming trip to the World Tap Championships — are the only Manitoban dancers on Team Canada this year.
“It’s exciting,” said Besson, a Miles Macdonell Collegiate grad and East St. Paul resident. “We’re hoping to just take in the experience. Obviously, winning a world championship would be amazing. But just being there, competing against different countries instead of just people in your own province, is really neat.”
“It’s going to be super interesting to see the tap dancing that’s happening around the world,” added Welburn, a student at Murdoch MacKay Collegiate.
Besson will be competing on the adult team, while Welburn competes with the junior team. The pair are also part of a trio — along with Claudia Chamzuk, a dancer from Vancouver, B.C. — who will be competing to a dance choreographed by Danny Nielsen.
“I love dancing for DBSD, but it’s cool to branch out and be taught by other people,” Besson said. “It’s cool to explore other people’s styles, because you learn a lot.”
Both Besson and Welburn were selected by choreographer and Team Canada coach Lisa LaTouche after auditioning earlier this year. Since then, the pair have made a number of trips to Calgary, Alta., to train with the rest of the team.
“It’s long days, lots of hours and hard work going into what we’re doing,” Besson admitted. “It’s not just physical, tap dancing, there’s a lot of brain work.”
Besson and Welburn both started dancing when they were two years old. Both find the rhythmic, musical nature of tap compelling.
“You don’t just have the steps, there’s so much else that goes into it,” Welburn said.
“Tap dancing is one of the only forms of dance where you’re an instrument in the music,” Besson added. “It’s cool to take songs and add to them with our own thing. When you can tap to a song, it’s a whole new thing to hear.”
To help raise funds for their trip to Germany, the pair are hosting a ‘bingo bowl’ on Nov. 10 at Chateau Lanes (1145 Nairn Ave.) from 7 to 10 p.m. Donations for a silent auction are still being collected.
“We appreciate anything people can give,” Besson said. “It makes us really happy the support that we’ve received.
”To contribute to the fundraiser, contact Donna Besson at d4926@shaw.ca or Jess Welburn at jessicawelburn@hotmail.comFor more information on the World Tap Championships, visit www.ido-dance.com
Sheldon Birnie
Community Journalist
Sheldon Birnie is a reporter/photographer for the Free Press Community Review. The author of Missing Like Teeth: An Oral History of Winnipeg Underground Rock (1990-2001), his writing has appeared in journals and online platforms across Canada, the U.S. and the U.K. A husband and father of two young children, Sheldon enjoys playing guitar and rec hockey when he can find the time. Email him at sheldon.birnie@freepress.mb.ca Call him at 204-697-7112
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.
Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Sheldon Birnie
Community Journalist
Sheldon Birnie is a reporter/photographer for the Free Press Community Review. The author of Missing Like Teeth: An Oral History of Winnipeg Underground Rock (1990-2001), his writing has appeared in journals and online platforms across Canada, the U.S. and the U.K. A husband and father of two young children, Sheldon enjoys playing guitar and rec hockey when he can find the time. Email him at sheldon.birnie@freepress.mb.ca Call him at 204-697-7112
Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber.
Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
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