Dance at DEMBE Theatre
Dance makes different demands of a theatre than a play does, and audiences arriving for their first dance evening here often have different questions. How long will it be? Will I understand it? Is it suitable for a six-year-old? This page answers those, and lists the dance performances coming up at the theatre in Tring along with those that have already taken place.
What kind of dance is performed here?
The largest part of it is the annual showcase. Dance schools across Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire bring their end-of-year or Christmas productions to this stage, and these are substantial evenings: dozens of short numbers across every class and age group, from four-year-olds in their first ballet routine to senior students performing work of real technical quality. If you have been to one, you know the particular pleasure of watching a class of very small children remember about half the choreography and enjoy themselves enormously regardless.
Alongside the showcases there are narrative dance productions, ballet, contemporary and modern work, tap and jazz, street and commercial styles, and performances by youth dance companies. Occasionally a touring company brings a full-length piece. The programme reflects what the area actually does, which is a great deal of dance across a wide range of styles.
What should I expect on the night?
If it is a school showcase, expect a long programme broken into short pieces, an interval, and a packed house in which almost everybody is related to a performer. Expect it to run slightly longer than advertised, because they generally do. Expect a lot of waiting backstage and a lot of pride in the auditorium. Photography and filming are usually restricted at children's dance performances for safeguarding reasons, and where that applies the production page and front of house staff will tell you clearly.
If it is a narrative or contemporary piece, expect something closer to a theatre evening: a single work, or two halves, with a running time more like a play. You do not need any knowledge of dance to follow it, and you certainly do not need to recognise the steps. Watch it as you would watch anything else, and let it do its work.
Is it suitable for children?
Dance is one of the better first visits for a young child. There is no dialogue to follow, pieces are short, the music is continuous and there is always something to look at. A school showcase in particular is full of children on stage, which holds the attention of children in the seats.
The practical caution is length. A three-hour showcase with two intervals is a lot for a four-year-old who is not in it. If your child is in the audience rather than the cast, check the running time on the production page and consider a matinee where one is offered.
Why dance belongs here
A dance school spends a year teaching children to perform, and then needs somewhere for them to actually do it. A proper stage with a proper floor, proper lighting and a real audience is not a luxury in that process, it is the whole point of it. The theatre vision commits us to being economical, offering subsidised rates to community groups, and to being local, providing an independent theatre in the heart of the area it serves. For dance schools, those two things together are what make a real production possible rather than a demonstration in a church hall.
It is educational in exactly the sense our fourth endeavour means. A child who has performed on a stage in front of several hundred people has learned something about nerve and preparation that no class can teach, and they have learned it at six, or nine, or fifteen.
Tickets, concessions and getting here
Every performance has its own page on this site with dates, prices and a seating plan. Dance showcases sell fast and in blocks, because families book together, so if you want a row of seats together book in the first days of sale. Concessions are generally available for children aged fifteen and under, full-time students, over sixties, and registered disabled patrons with their carers, subject to proof and one per person per transaction; terms are confirmed on the production page. All tickets include a DEMBE Theatre Restoration Fee, which goes back into the building.
We are at Penny Royal Court, Station Road, Tring, HP23 5QY. Parking is free in the main car park, there is a bus stop on Station Road directly outside, and Tring station is a short walk away on the line into London Euston, around thirty-five minutes. Wheelchair spaces are available in the auditorium, and if you have any access requirement please contact us before booking.
Coming up, and already performed
Below are the dance performances currently on sale, followed by those that have already taken place. We keep past performances listed, so a dancer who performed here has a permanent record of the show they were part of.
