If dancing around on a theatre stage in the dark with complete strangers is something you never thought you would do, you’re not alone. Hosted on the pitch-black Regal Theatre stage every Tuesday evening in September, this free event seems to be truly unique to Subi. We were super intrigued by the Dark Dance concept, so we just had to try it out to see what the fuss was all about.
To start the evening, the event’s MC and organiser Jo talked the crowd through how their bodies naturally sync to the rhythm of the music whilst swaying to the soft beats of Africa by Toto. From there, the lights were switched off and the music started pumping.
Starting with a classic, Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go, the crowd got straight into it, with the darkness encouraging everyone to really focus on the song and dance freely without judgement. The evening’s playlist featured classic songs you were bound to know and perhaps a few you might not – for the latter, the crowd was encouraged to explore the body’s organic movement, and just go with the flow. As the playlist continued, the energy kept building and the sweat kicked in, so we recommend you don your best activewear!
On the inspiration behind the event, Jo told us that during COVID-19 lockdown she was walking through the supermarket and heard Wham’s iconic tune Wake Me Up, which naturally made her start dancing in the isle. At that moment, she realised that it had been way too long since she’d had a proper dance and thought, why not do it on the big stage?
From there, Dark Dance was born and quickly became a weekly event for Regal Theatre staff to shake off the day. Once restrictions relaxed, the Regal thought they’d spread the love and make it a community event.
Dark Dance sessions are running every Tuesday in September and are completely free to book, you just need to secure your spot here. Each session still has spaces left but they’re booking up fast so get in quick or risk missing out!
