French Dance Workshop

Vanessa will expertly lead a 2-hour workshop to introduce you to popular bal folk dances in preparation for our next bal with a reknowned musician from France!

There is no need to bring a partner and beginners are especially welcome!

Vanessa is a skilled, experienced and patient teacher from the South of France and living in Belfast since 2009.

Time:

3.15pm - Registration

3.30pm to 5.30pm - Dance Workshop, with a few breaks

Venue : An Droichead, Belfast, BT7 2EP (walking distance from the city centre)

Workshop Price: £10.00 via Eventbrite or £14.00 on the door (cash only)

Workshop Dances*:

1.⁠ ⁠Zomermorgen (collective valse from Flandres)

2.⁠ ⁠La piternelle (from Flanders too)

3.⁠ ⁠Rond d'Argenton "Mon cœur est en pleine" (from Berry, central France)

The selected dances are to help prepare you for the following bal with our guest musician from France, Gabriel Lenoir, on 1 March 2025 from 7pm - please book these events separately.

For info: www.gabriel-lenoir.fr

• subject to change, according to those who attend the workshop.

During the workshop, there will be a little bit of French spoken as well as English, but don't panic, the body language will remain our main means of communication!

Please note that the discounted online sales will finish at noon on the day before the event for admin purposes. Numbers are limited - book early to avoid disappointment!

General information:

Balfolk is a form of folk dancing that is very popular across Europe. The music is varied in rhythm and speed, ranging from slow sensuous couple dances like the mazurka, to the fast and flowing progressive circles like the chapelloise. Our evening bals include a wide variety of these dances, from the repetitive and hypnotic Breton chains, the lively and intricate bourrées from the centre of France and the rhythmic energetic solo dances from the Pays Basque.

We are currently run a monthly bal (excluding July and August), and include a mix of repeated dances and 1 or 2 new dances each month; we also run a number of dance workshops during the year too.

Getting in!

There is a carpark at the venue, if you haven't been before, turn into Cooke Street, and the carpark is the first set of open gates on the left - you will see a Bal Feirste sign just before the first mobile building on the right, walk past this building and take a right, walk straight ahead and through another gate. At this point you will see a red brick building on the left and we will be performing upstairs in this building.

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For your information, Bal Feirste is a not-for-profit organisation.

Host or Publisher Bal Feirste