Come On, Dance!

Across Scotland this month, even as the theatre relaxes after the seasonal boom, three dance events are still treading the boards. All of them share a Scottish identity – like Off Kilter, which is also touring – but offer different flavours of Scottish dance.

Unsurprisingly for a revival of a twenty year old piece, A Wee Home from Home does feel dated. A duet between musician Michael Marra and Frank McConnell, it dwells on Glasgow's reputation as no mean city and welcome home, taking in slashings, loneliness and a "Scotch" sitting room of tartan.

Marra's rich voice has drawn comparisons with Tom Waits, melancholic and hopeful. The last twenty years have not tamed McConnell's technique, but do add a poignancy to his childhood memory routines.

The vision of Glasgow does not account for the modern changes of the city: the finale recreates a Scottishness that is beyond even kitsch; this is a solid, narrative dance, brave enough to tell an old story in an old manner.

The Nutcracker was Ashley Page's first full length ballet for the Scottish Ballet: it is not as radical as his later work, but has a spartan purity that is a refreshing change from the usual Christmas shows. Page shows a reverence for the roots of this ballet, letting the dancers have a chance to show off their skills in a series of solos, and bringing just enough German Expressionist character to the set to shoot originality through the production.

It is safe compared to Page's later commisisons and choreographies, a fascinating insight into his early relationship with the company, a company that no longer needs the guest slots that filled up the first production. This is one for the balletomanes: fastidious, fast paced and full of charming set pieces.

Finally, there is Go Dance 2010, the Theatre Royal's showcase of some of the country’s best dance. Across five days, nearly one thousand five hundred dancers will leap, pirouette and break across the stage: forty five groups will perform everything from hip hop to jive. It includes community groups and schools, alongside professional companies like Black Swan showing that grass roots participation in dance is both of the highest standard and thriving.

Creative Learning Manager Karen Townsend said: "The whole week looks amazing: there are so many beautiful pieces being performed by some amazing groups. It’s great to have so many diverse groups come together.”

Dance in Scotland is so healthy, and not least because events like Go Dance! offer an early chance for performers to hit a large stage, and reach a large audience. Last year's highlights include a piece from Natasha Gilmore and a recreation of High School Musical: although the material varies, the quality is consistently high.

The connection between these three works is both Scottish energy, and a sense of ambition, that dance is a powerful, direct medium, emotional and sincere. And seeing the amateurs up on the big stage is an inspiration that can get anyone out to those classes at Dance House.