40 Years of the Debbie Chapman Dancers

This year marks the momentous 40^th anniversary of bbodance school, Debbie Chapman Dancers. What started out as a small but mighty group of 9 jazz students in 1986 has flourished into a school currently training nearly 400 dancers in an array of disciplines.

Debbie’s dance journey began with her training from bbodance teacher Joyce Marriot. Inspired by the artistry and musicality that the syllabus offered, Debbie chose to complete her teacher training with bbodance, following in the footsteps of her mentor. Continuing the family tradition, Debbie’s daughter Anna also began teaching at DCD after training at London Studio Centre.

To celebrate the 40^th anniversary, the school held a performance, Dansation XVI, at the Wales Millennium Theatre featuring students of all ages in a range of different dance genres. Students danced for friends and family while putting on a vibrant and enthusiastic performance that they had previously showcased in September at the Utilita Arena in Cardiff. The passion and drive of Debbie’s dancers is unmatched; the studio has reached the semi-finals of Britain’s Got Talent twice and competed on Sky 1’s Got to Dance.

Shows mean more than just performance for Debbie Chapman Dancers. Every show is done in aid of local charities, and over the course of 40 years, over £100,000 has been raised. Debbie is passionate about her school and gives her time and effort selflessly to dedicate herself to the dancers who call DCD home and the community that surrounds the school.

The school is looking forward to their upcoming competitions as well as bbodance exam sessions which will be taking place in March.

Congratulations are also in order for DCD winning the Welsh finals of the National Entertainment Awards, meaning they qualify for the UK finals taking place at the O2 in June. They also won a trip to New York City to perform on Broadway!

The school hopes for many more successful years of training and performance, continuing the legacy Debbie has created thus far. DCD continues to go from strength to strength and Debbie and her team are grateful to bbodance for being an integral part of this.