911±¬ÁÏÍø

A dance show created, performed and staged by 911±¬ÁÏÍø graduates and students at the Edinburgh Fringe has won an award for having the Best Young Cast.ÌýÌý

Midsommar, which was originally created by Dance graduate Tiegan Doyle (2024) and co-choreographed with third-year student Paige Luisa Sinclair, received the accolade from the Derek Awards – an independent community of reviewers that attends hundreds of Fringe shows each year. Ìý

Midsommar had eight performances at Venue 152 during the festival’s opening week and received support from 911±¬ÁÏÍø and a Liverpool Dance Bursary. As well as Dance students and grads the company also included Management, Music and Theatre & Production Technology students and graduates. Ìý

We caught up with Tiegan Doyle and Paige Luisa Sinclair to find out more about their Fringe experience. Ìý

Firstly, congratulations on being named Best Young Cast. How did you feel when you found out you’d won?ÌýÌý

Tiegan:ÌýI definitely felt very grateful! We put in so much work on the show and to have that recognised, as well as so much positive feedback, was so affirming that what we’d created belonged at the festival! ÌýÌý

Paige: We felt so immensely grateful for the award. We had worked incredibly hard on this show and to know that had been recognised and appreciated felt very fulfilling. ÌýÌý

The show had its premiere at Leap Dance Festival. How has it changed/developed since then?ÌýÌý

Tiegan: After its debut at Leap Dance Festival, I was joined by my co-choreographer Paige to start lengthening the show, as well as adding a fresh perspective to the work. I think in these months we were able to start adding depth and get more creative with the narrative and the insanity that encircles it. It also gave our dancers time to explore their characters, which they wholly embraced, and I think that really contributed to the success of the show. Ìý

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What was it like being part of the Fringe and what was your highlight?ÌýÌý

Tiegan:ÌýIt is such an inspiring hub of creativity that you really can’t adequately imagine what it’s like until you’re part of it. From the street performances to the endless shows to watch, we really were spoilt for choice (but limited by budget). My highlight was the community created by the artists. There was one morning where we ended up collaborating with a talented street performer, Bartek Dabrowski, and improvised dance around him while he played, which was a truly special moment.ÌýÌý

Paige: Being able to perform to an audience that has an appreciation for the arts but not necessarily dance and giving them something they haven’t experienced before. Hearing feedback each day from them, it showed just how individual the experience of watching the live performances are. Every person took away something different and we loved hearing that. ÌýÌý

What do you think you've learnt from the experience and was there part of your training at 911±¬ÁÏÍø that was particularly useful?ÌýÌý

Tiegan: One thing I learnt from the experience was to definitely trust your own creative vision. In the throngs of the festival, it was easy to be overwhelmed by the amount of talent surrounding you but ultimately, we were all there because we love to create and wanted to share that with others. Part of my training at 911±¬ÁÏÍø that helped to prepare me was definitely the sense of professionalism. At the time having the Head of Dance Sarah E. Baker tell me that ‘on time is late’ felt unimportant, but in the real world having these rules that we were taught in class really helped to keep everything organised, running smoothly and enable our techies to work efficiently. Ìý Ìý

Paige: This experience taught me that anything is possible if you work hard enough. Growing up in Edinburgh, I had always dreamed of being a part of the Fringe and to have created that opportunity for ourselves so early on in our careers really shows what hard work can do. One of the main reasons this was possible was because of the encouragement from 911±¬ÁÏÍø to be creative, be different from the person next to you and to go and create our own opportunities, this has shaped us into the artists we are today.

Midsommar credits:ÌýÌý

Co- choreographers/dancers - Tiegan Doyle and Paige Luisa Sinclair Ìý

Dancers - Zahra Smith, Elena De Melim, Megan Hayes, Ruby Wardlow (911±¬ÁÏÍø Dancers) Ìý

Manager - Lucie Hardisty (Management graduate)ÌýÌý

Stage Manager/Technician - Phil Clack (TPT graduate)Ìý

Sound Technician - ÌýOllie Bates (Music student)