CNWL Arts in Health partnered with the Royal Ballet and Opera (RBO) to create a new community project that helps individuals struggling with mental health conditions.
The project is part of RBO’s Creative Exchange Programme, bringing together a community that explores the impact of ballet and movement on mental health.
Their aim is to help individuals explore creativity, socialise and build confidence in the ongoing support to help improve wellbeing.
Former dancer at the Royal Ballet and Opera David Pickering said: “Dance is an incredibly powerful way to express yourself and I feel very privileged to be able to help this wonderful group of dances find that within themselves.
“For projects like this we always aim to work with communities who are often underrepresented in the arts to give more people the chance to engage with ballet and opera in new ways.
“Working with this brilliant group of people we hope to show them and others that ballet is for everyone.”
Over 12 weeks, participants attended dance workshops in a West End studio led by Pickering and fellow former Royal Ballet dancer Tara Bhavnani.
Workshops were coordinated with CNWL’s dance movement psychotherapists Carol Jaffier and Jenni de Knoop as well as dramatherapist Laura Knight.
Each session aimed to represent a safe, creative space for participants to freely express themselves through dance.
The initiative highlighted the power of dance and the arts in supporting mental health recovery.
RBO dancers and staff received mental health first aid training, to better equip them in supporting individuals experiencing mental health challenges.
Dance promotes physical health, fitness and coordination, while psychologically and emotionally it provides an outlet for self-expression, reducing stress and boosting wellbeing.
The project built a dance community which helped reduce feelings of loneliness and isolation that many participants struggling with mental health face.
Most participants had no prior dance experience.
Over the workshops, participants build close friendships and a supportive community that held one another in the journey towards empowerment and self-expression.
Jonny, a participant, said: “Really inspired by everyone and I think we all underestimate ourselves.
“It helps me and I believe it helps everyone to challenge their fears. Very inspiring.
“We all have our fears regardless of mental state and if you can challenge that you feel more empowered.”
The project concluded with a special performance titled Alice Magic, inspired by The Royal Ballet’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
Participants performed in the Royal Opera House’s Paul Hamlyn Hall for family and friends.
Through this important initiative, Royal Ballet and Opera challenged the stereotype of ballet as inaccessible or elitist.
Instead, it pushed forward the growing recognition of the importance of arts-based interventions and support in mental health care.
The success of the project underscored the need for similar art initiatives to bring change to the way mental health is supported and seen.
The project will end on 31 January, 2025.
Photo credit: Royal Ballet and Opera
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