Dancing in moderation

The latest figures show the number of young people being admitted to hospital with alcohol problems has risen by a third in the past decade¹. In Wigan Borough, several authorities came together recently to address the problem of alcohol misuse among young people through the arts. Issue-based arts projects are nothing new, and some question their value. However, the Ten Green Bottles project, exploring the long and short-term risks of binge drinking, shows how carefully planned and well-executed arts projects can make a valuable contribution towards helping young people deal with important issues.

Ten Green Bottles is a dance performance, choreographed by Claire Pring and performed across the country by Arcane Dance Company. It has been designed around the views of 14 to 16 year-olds and it encourages young people to think about the effects too much alcohol can have on their health and safety. Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust Arts and Festivals Team (with support from a number of partner organisations including Wigan Council Children and Young People’s Services and Ashton, Wigan and Leigh Primary Care Trust) recently brought Ten Green Bottles to Wigan Borough.

In other areas, Arcane Dance Company have performed Ten Green Bottles and then held follow-up dance and discussion workshops around the issues it raises. In Wigan, however, the company worked with the local partnership to create a project giving 150 young people the opportunity to take part in seven weeks of contemporary dance, physical theatre and debate, exploring the issue in depth and in a fun and physically challenging way. The project culminated with Arcane Dance Company and five local youth groups producing a series of lively routines during a night of dance at Robin Park Sports Centre in Wigan.

Wigan Leisure and Culture Trust Fit to Dance Co-ordinator, Vicky Thomas, says, “The Ten Green Bottles Project gave young people the chance to make connections between binge drinking and issues such as violence, anti-social behaviour and risky sexual activity. The project also stimulated the young people physically and showed that dance is a good way to spend your free time. The young people developed a physical connection with the subject matter, rather than just seeing reams of statistics and facts on a page, and they contributed their own ideas and experiences to their dance and the related debate around the issue. The whole combination of discussion, dance and music is new and fresh and really made people sit up and take notice!”

It is very difficult to ascertain exactly how much of an impact projects like Ten Green Bottles have on the attitudes and behaviour of those who participate in them. What is certain, however, is that this project left many young people of Wigan Borough better informed about binge drinking, and it was something they enjoyed. Leah Unsworth, 13, from Marsh Green in Wigan, says, “The project was brilliant. The dance company were great and dead friendly. I would sooner do this type of project than sit and read something about alcohol because it is fun and that helps you remember more. I know our whole group would definitely do it again.”