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Given that February is the month of love, it seems like the perfect time to tell you all the things we LOVE seeing most at Moving Waves. While admittedly there’s a whole lot to love here, we’ve whittled it down to the five most important things at our Performing Arts Academy for children and their families in London, including Archway, Haringey plus all our after-school clubs in primary schools right across Greater London.
Pause, dramatic drum roll, deep breath, are you ready for the big reveal?
We love what we do and we love you. Here are the five things we’ve agreed that we love to see most at Moving Waves.
Building confidence is part of our DNA. It lies at the very heart of what we do. For us, it’s all about providing a safe, nurturing, fun space to allow young people to learn and develop. I always picture planting a seed in good soil, giving it plenty of water and sunlight and watching it grow stronger day by day.
In the same way, we absolutely adore seeing our students develop skills and grow in confidence. Importantly, confidence is a skill they can take beyond the dance studio and apply everywhere, including the school environment and playground. In fact, it’s a life skill that will stand them in good stead for the rest of their lives. At the end of the day, confidence makes us feel ready for life's experiences. When we feel confident, we're more likely to accept opportunities — not back away from them. And if things don't work out at first, confidence helps us try again. Win-win!
We know that starting a new activity can be challenging. It’s not easy to enter a new, unfamiliar space. Some people might feel awkward, shy or embarrassed. We work to put our students at ease. Everyone belongs here. Everyone’s contribution matters. Everyone has a voice.
For us, it’s an absolute joy to witness our students relax, become comfortable, see them smiling and bouncing into class with such enthusiasm and excitement, ready to get going. Seeing them with big smiles makes us smile too! We all know that smiling enhances positive emotions. It’s true — happiness is infectious! At Moving Waves, we want to spread the joy together.
On a connected note, we love seeing our students make new friends. They go from feeling shy around each other to opening up and developing such strong bonds. The journey to making a show each summer at Moving Waves involves making wonderful memories in the dance studio. I believe it's the shared experience of creating something together that encourages these friendships to form. Rehearsing to reach a common goal, feeling a sense of shared achievement – the reality is that a strong bond already exists by the time the show opens. Having been a shy theatre kid myself, I can tell you that the friends I made in youth theatre are still some of my closest friends a decade on. It’s where I found my tribe.
There’s nothing more satisfying than seeing a young person explore the full spectrum of the Arts and all that we have to offer at Moving Waves. From art and crafts through to musical theatre and acting for stage and screen, our students are given the opportunity to experiment and discover what they love best. During the week at Haringey and Archway, we also host lots of dance workshops, ranging from ballet and street dance through to contemporary and musical theatre. We feel privileged to be part of each and every young person’s creative journey! We are here to provide mentorship, reassurance, guidance and support. Picture us as the wind beneath their wings!
Finally, we love seeing our students succeed. Their success is our success. We’re honoured to witness their progress and growth as they learn and develop new skills. We love sharing their triumphs and achievements, both big and small. This can be anything from getting a turn right in ballet or finishing a song in musical theatre through to completing the summer show and taking that final bow.
We love, love, love to celebrate achievements. We want to see young people learn, grow and overcome!
What are the 5 things you love most about Moving Waves? Let us know
Want your child to be part of the love story? Welcome! Sign up now. If you have questions, please email Mary at info@movingwaves.org, who will be delighted to help. Our website also provides more information about Moving Waves. Stay in touch by following us on our Instagram here.
