Chesterfield pupils of Ikonix Academy of Performing Arts are chosen for Dreamcoat Stars professional show

Twenty-five pupils of Ikonix Academy of Performing Arts, Newbold, will showcase their talents in Dreamcoat Stars at the Winding Wheel Theatre on April 20.

Abi Turner, principal, said: "A few months back I received this email asking if we'd take part in this professional show. I was just so flattered and honoured. We're still a relatively new school and they've somehow stumbled across us and thought we would be a good addition for their show."

Dreamcoat Stars focuses on Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and other musical theatre shows. The Ikonix pupils, who are aged 7 to 12 years, will perform a piece from Matilda on their own and Joseph numbers including Any Dream Will Do, Close Every Door and a megamix alongside professional singers led by Keith Jack.

The Winding Wheel Theatre will be the biggest stage that the Ikonix students have performed on. Abi said: "We started at Chesterfield College and soon outgrew that. Most recently, in March, we performed at Dronfield Civic Hall, they were crammed in the dressing room. We just keep stepping up all the time which is so nice.

"We're growing quite rapidly and have about 160 children. Our main academy starts from four years and offers street dance, musical theatre, ballet, tap. We also have Baby Ballerina classes, which are basically from walking age.

"With all my teaching staff I tried to employ performers that have been out and done that and it obviously shows by the contacts that we're starting to get and it gives the children some great performing opportunities that maybe other dance schools don't get the option of."

Ami Evans is head of musical theatre at Ikonix and is a member of vintage harmony group The Bluebirds who have backed TV and theatre star Jane McDonald on numerous occasions. The Bluebirds will be performing their own show at the Winding Wheel Theatre on June 7.

Abi’s work as a professional dancer has taken her around the world on the cruise liner Arcadia and to the Mediterranean on the ship Oceana. She has performed at events and festivals in India, Malaysia and Tenerife and on numerous theatre tours of the UK.

Her talents extend to choreographing several UK shows including chart-topping artist Jive Bunny and providing in-house entertainment for holiday parks. She has also performed in Bollywood shows and modelled at catwalk events.

One of Abi’s main goals in setting up the Ikonix Academy of Performing Arts was to make it financially accessible to all. She said: "Even though we've got top tier training with professionals, it's affordable. Dance and musical theatre should be for everyone, it shouldn't be for the privileged or who's got the most money."

Abi personally teaches Tiny Ballerina classes from 2.5 years, a jazz class called Performers that works on style and technique, tap and street dance.

She launched Ikonix in 2019 at a time when she was doing a lot of teaching. She said: “I enjoyed teaching so much that I thought I'm going to set up my own academy in Chesterfield. That was just a few months before the Covid pandemic....we had to shut everything and we were off for a year or so.

"We were in a community hall in Holme Hall but they were a charity and didn't have the funds after Covid to keep it running so they shut their premises. The race was on to try and find amother premises. I luckily came across Hall on the Green in Newbold which had availability.”

For further information on Ikonix Academy of Performing Arts, go to https://ikonix-academy.co.uk