Talented Jarrow youngsters dancing their way to Disneyland Paris

Members of Poppleton School of Dance have been selected to travel to the famous holiday resort in Paris to take part in a huge event.

The 41 dancers, aged five to 21, will be part of the line-up at Disney’s Magic Performing Arts Days.

The school, based at Primrose Community Association in Jarrow, will call Disneyland home from August 13 to 15.

Lindsey Newman, who runs the school with her sister, Tracey Poppleton, said: “Disney invites performing arts groups from around the world to go there and dance on their professional stage.

“We went in 2011 and it went really well. They said they were really impressed with us and it’s amazing to be invited back.

“Everyone is just so excited about going, not just for the dancing but for the big holiday together as well. For a lot of the kids, this will be there first time abroad so it’s a huge deal for them.”

The school is now hard at work perfecting their routine and raising money for the professional-looking costumes they need.

Lindsey, 33, from Jarrow, added: “We’re working really hard on our routine. We’ve got lots of rules from Disney about what we can and can’t do so it’s quite challenging but we’re all enjoying it.

“We’re doing five routines so we’re getting all our choreography down and practicing hard. I think the kids are even more excited about being part of the pre-parade though.

“They had to audition for Disney to do that and they’re working with one of their choreographers and they’ll be dancing down the parade route ahead of the first float.

“It’s a huge thing for the dance school to be able to perform for an international audience like that.”

The school has to raise around £6,000 to pay for costumes that are a professional enough standard for the Disney stage.

The youngsters are all taking part in the their own fundraising activities, which includes a family fun day at Primrose CA on Sunday, July 3.

The event, from noon to 4pm, will include stalls, fairground rides, pony rides, nail art and hair braiding.

The Hebburn Charity Gala, featuring Jason Cook and Steffen Peddie, is also raising funds for the trip.

Lindsey said: “We’re so grateful to Jason for supporting the school and to everyone who’s helping raise money. It’s such a huge opportunity for the school.”