Our Walker-based dance group is celebrating its 10th anniversary by inviting 10 new members aged 60 and over to join the weekly sessions focused on movement, creativity, laughter and connection.
Company of Others Ensemble has been bringing local people together through dance since 2016. Based at our home, The Bricks on Belmont Street, Ensemble offers pay-what-you-feel sessions for people aged 60+, open to all abilities, including those who have never danced before. In fact, every current member was new to dance when they first joined.
What began as a falls-prevention and wellbeing project has grown into a close-knit, adventurous group that resists the idea that later life should be small or sedentary. Ensemble is about saying: your life can be as big as you want it to be, and you’re never too old to dance.
Over the past decade, members have co-created original dance pieces, some of which have been performed in unexpected places, including live art performance club night PUG. Not all members choose to perform but still enjoy the weekly sessions.
Sessions explore a wide range of styles including contemporary dance, creative movement, ballet, ballroom, voguing and tap, always adapted to suit each individual.
Our Company Founder, Artistic Director and CEO, Nadia Iftkhar reflects on the group:
“Looking back on the past 10 years has been a great opportunity to think of all the adventures we’ve had together, the trust built between us, the friendships we’ve created,” she shares. “I love how the group are up for giving anything a go, that’s really the only requirement to join, anything else doesn’t matter!”
The impact on members’ lives has been profound. George, who works on a farm, says Ensemble is one of the only times in the week he leaves it. “Before Ensemble I felt like I was sleepwalking into old age,” he says. “Now I feel happier, more purposeful, and healthier.”
Sylvia, who has been part of the group since the beginning, says performing has given her confidence she never expected. She has since appeared in a music video and credits the sessions with helping her memory and wellbeing. “No matter how old you are, or how stiff you feel, just try it,” she says, “I always feel better after I’ve been dancing.”
Another long-standing member, Linda, joined when the project first launched as a falls-prevention programme. “I thought it would just be an exercise class, but it’s much more than that,” she says. “It’s sociable, inclusive, and it broadens your horizons.” Linda met her partner Tony through the group, who celebrated his 90th birthday on the dance floor last year. “If we’re still dancing together, you can too,” she laughs.
Dance has been shown to be one of the most effective activities for supporting brain health in later life – a landmark 2003 study in the New England Journal of Medicine by Verghese et al., found that older adults who dance regularly have a 76% lower risk of dementia compared to non-dancers. The group also offers something harder to measure: friendship, joy and a reason to get out of the house on a Monday afternoon.
As the group enters its tenth year, Ensemble is opening its doors to new members. To celebrate, the group hosted a tea dance for over 60s last month in Walker called Thé Dansant (French for ‘dancing tea’). Inspired by the community tea parties once common across Tyneside, the event was a riotously fun afternoon with afternoon tea, music, a raffle and, of course, dancing.
Company of Others Ensemble meets every Monday from 1–2:30pm in Walker. Transport cost support is available.
To join the group, contact us at community@companyofothers.org.uk or call 0191 276 1524.