Pioneer spirit

New York-based Ikolo, who features in two days of dance at Newcastle's Theatre Royal on May 7-8, says: "Our philosophy is to be a healing balm so that people can come to the show and not think about what is happening with terrorists, Iraq and Israel. Our job is to provide that healing energy.

"We managed to bring ourselves together after 9-11 and perform at a very high level and all of New York responded and we were well received. We were there the day it happened. We will never be a ballet like the Royal Ballet, but we are classic rather than classical and when you are classic it doesn't matter what you're doing."

His unusual Christian name is from Western Nigeria and it means "the greatest drum" which was his father's interpretation of his son's birth making the biggest impact possible on his life.

Of his career, he says: "The dance company came and did a movement workshop with my school at third grade (eight or nine years of age). We were doing a little moon-walking inspired by Michael Jackson. I guess I showed promise and I got a scholarship. During the winter session we got a chance to take part in The Nutcracker and every year when I was ready to quit my mum would mention The Nutcracker and I'd do 'just one more year'."

Three years ago he joined the Dance Theatre of Harlem Company, which was pledged in Martin Luther King's to the local community by Arthur Mitchell and the late Karel Shook in 1969, and was promoted to principal dancer last year.

"I still have that love of performing and the satisfaction and thrill of being on stage. I would trade it for nothing else in the world. I feel with the proper nutrition and the right treatment, because we get the same injuries that footballers have, I don't see why I can't go on dancing until I'm ready to stop.

"We have a dancer in the company called Donald Williams who has been with Harlem for 20 years and he's a complete inspiration to me."

What's Harlem like in 2004? "Well you know I think it's on the verge of a renaissance. We are getting a lot more construction and those old shanties are drifting away and leaving Manhattan island. I remember I had that intimidation too when I first went to Harlem - 'oh my God, who are those guys hanging about on the corner?' etc - but after three years, I see Harlem as a place where things have blossomed."

GARY Kemp has moved far away from the huge success in the 1980s as guitarist and songwriter for the group Spandau Ballet and has just composed the songs for a new children's production called Bedbug with writing partner Guy Pratt.

The musical, based on Mayakovsky's 1920s parody of Stalin's Russia, has been adapted by Snoo Wilson and is one of ten works being presented by North-East theatre groups for the third Shell Connections festival at Newcastle's Theatre Royal.

The incentive for the youngsters is that the best Festival Of Youth Theatre productions will be invited to take part in a London showcase at the National Theatre in June.

Kemp is no stranger to youth work having trained with the famous Anna Sher School as a child. He moved into TV and film work in his teens. "Basically the play takes the piss out of the Soviet dream and his lead character is frozen and defrosted 50 years in the future when everyone living in a sterile, unemotional and suburban utopia. I think that Mayakovsky had no alternative but to kill himself two years after writing this play.

"It originally had little songs by Shostakovich and we wrote whole new songs and we called one The Loveboat Has Crashed which was taken from Mayakovsky's actual suicide note - and a great title for a tune. "So we've ended up with a vaudeville, larger-than-life show which goes with the instinctive performances from young actors. There's a tendency of older actors like myself to be rather patronising, but I think these are very good actors who just happen to be young."

He and the creative team have talked to each show's producer about the ideas behind Bedbug and have seen the music develop from just a keyboard in one show to 22 musicians and 60 actors in another.

Kemp is enjoying an opportunity to have an influence on young lives.

He laughs and says: "Twenty years ago I influenced kids to wear make-up, so it's about time I introduced some culture."

After composing all of Spandau's 23 hit singles, he and brother Martin went back to screenwork with a portrayal of infamous London gangsters The Krays. After appearing in Hollywood movies he switched back again to music and has seen his work appear in Spin City, The Wedding Singer and Charlie's Angels. Recent acting credits include the West End production of Yasmina Reza's Art, Murder In Mind for the BBC and MIT for ITV.

Bedbug is being staged by students from Stockton's Riverside College on Saturday at 11am at Newcastle's Theatre Royal.

The first plays opens at 6.15pm tomorrow and performances run throughout Saturday and Sunday afternoon at 12. Other groups taking part are Blyth Community College, Ryton Comprehensive, St Wilfreds RC School, Heaton Manor, Manor College, Theatre Cap A Pie, Westfield School, Pnteland School, New College Durham and Whickham School.

* For ticket information on all Newcastle Theatre Royal shows ring 0870 905 506

Published: 29/04/2004