That is the verdict of Dunedin Tap dancing Society president Denise Henderson after a busy King’s Birthday weekend of competitions at Coronation Hall in Mosgiel.
‘‘If you go around the country, pretty much anywhere, a competition is made up of a variety of styles of jazz, lyrical, musical theatre and then a little bit of tap.
‘‘They don’t have enough tap dancers to sustain the weekend in competition.
‘‘Whereas in Dunedin, we’re such a strong centre for tap that we have a tap competition solely for tap dancing.’’
More than 70 individual dancers participated in the King’s Birthday Tap Dancing Competitions, with the eldest in their early 20s.
‘‘We battle that sort of Good Ship Lollipop vibe that it’s just little kids in sequins.
‘‘It’s nice to see the progression, actually, that we’ve got dancers as old as 20 dancing.’’
Most of the competitors, particularly those in the 15 and over categories, would have been practising for months leading up to the event, she said.
Two older dancers, Yana Dewey and Isla Kamo, were nominated for New Zealand Young Performer of the Year in Palmerston North.
Visiting judge Kaitlyn Weaver was impressed with the standard of performance.
‘‘I’m looking for strong technique and personalities to match for all the things.
‘‘I like it because it mixes the ability to be a musician and a dancer, the ability to make the rhythms of the music but also be able to use all your dance elements, whether it be classical training or your modern training.
‘‘It’s a great fusion of both.’’
The competitions wrapped up yesterday.
