The U.Dance National Festival, the flagship youth event from One Dance UK’s U.Dance programme, will be taking place at Sadler's Wells in 2025!

In July 2025, Sadler’s Wells is to present the first edition YFX Youth Festival, a new annual festival which celebrates and showcases the exceptional range of youth work across the United Kingdom. For its inaugural edition, Sadler’s Wells is partnering with One Dance UK to present work from the National Youth Dance Companies of England, Scotland and Wales, new choreographic creations from young people and showcases featuring youth groups from around the country. In addition, the Festival will host a series of workshops for young dancers, as well as talks and symposiums all centred on dance for children and young people. The Festival takes place across Sadler’s Wells Theatre and the Lilian Baylis Studio in Angel and at Sadler’s Wells East, the brand-new state-of-the-art theatre that opens in Stratford next year. Highlights of the YFX Youth Festival programme include:

- London premiere of England’s National Youth Dance Company’s new work by Olivier Award-winning hip hop dance company Boy Blue.

- U.Dance National Festival, the flagship event from One Dance UK’s U.Dance programme, which next year will bring together the National Youth Dance Companies of England, Scotland and Wales in one evening, and showcase youth groups from across the United Kingdom.

- Sadler’s Wells Making Moves initiative and One Dance UK’s Young Creatives – pioneering programmes which encourage young people to develop their own choreographic creations.  

Joce Giles, Director of Learning & Engagement at Sadler’s Wells, said “Sadler’s Wells is passionate about providing ambitious and transformative opportunities for young people and YFX will feature an exciting mix of performances by young dancers across our stages. Dance can play an important role in the lives of young people, and we are delighted to be showcasing work by schools, youth groups, and individual young artists, which will highlight the broad spectrum of high-quality work taking place across the UK.  

We are thrilled to be working in partnership with One Dance UK to host their U.Dance National Festival as part of YFX this year and are so excited to welcome hundreds of young dancers to Sadler’s Wells. Through the various strands of work taking place within YFX, we aim to celebrate the talent and creativity that exists in this country, highlight the importance of all young people having access to dance opportunities, and inspire more young people to engage with dance in the future." 

Laura Nicholson, Head of Children and Young People’s Dance at One Dance UK, said: “We believe passionately that all young people should be able to access the transformational power of dance, whether as a performer, choreographer, participant or audience member. We are thrilled that One Dance UK’s exciting programmes of events will form part of the inaugural YFX Festival in 2025.”

Sir Richard Alston, Children and Young People’s Dance Champion said: “The U.Dance National Festival and Young Creatives programme mark a highlight in the youth dance calendar, showcasing the creativity of young people and group leaders across the country. Dance has a unique ability to bring communities together and to inspire. I am so excited to witness the next generation of dance talent.”

YFX Youth Festival kicks off with double header on Saturday 19 July 2025 with performances from One Dance UK’s Young Creatives in the Lilian Baylis Studio at 4pm, followed by the London premiere of National Youth Dance Company England’s latest work in Sadler’s Wells Theatre, created by east London hip hop dance theatre titans Boy Blue.

Young Creatives is One Dance UK’s pioneering youth choreography development programme, aiming to develop and nurture the next generation of creative voices and dance makers. The 2024/25 cohort of Young Creatives draws inspiration from a range of practitioners and sources, including the choreographic toolkits provided by the Making Moves choreographers.

England’s National Youth Dance Company (NYDC) aims to create and perform innovative and influential dance, bringing together some of the brightest dance talent from across England to work with Sadler’s Wells’ internationally renowned Associate Artists and visiting companies. For 2025, the company is working with the Olivier and Sky Arts-award winning company, Boy Blue. Founded in east London in 2001 by composer Michael ‘Mikey J’ Asante MBE and choreographer Kenrick ‘H2O’ Sandy MBE, Boy Blue has been instrumental in defining the potential and power of hip-hop dance theatre across the UK since starting its inception. The work will tour the country and receives its London performances as part of YFX Youth Festival.

On Wednesday 23 July 2025, Sadler’s Wells will present the National Platform of Making Moves at Sadler’s Wells East. Back for its second year, Making Moves is the hugely successful choreographic programme for schools and youth groups across England. Sadler’s Wells Learning and Engagement team provides digital toolkits created by leading choreographers to 48 groups across the country, runs a weekend of masterclasses for their group leaders, and delivers practical workshops during regional choreographic sharings for the 500+ young people taking part. This year, the groups are working with Ben Duke, Kloé Dean and Sadler’s Wells Associate Artists Jules Cunningham and Seeta Patel. A selection of these groups will premiere their work as part of YFX Youth Festival.

Across the final weekend, Friday 25 – Sunday 27 July 2025, Sadler’s Wells East hosts the U.Dance National Festival, the culmination of a programme which sees thousands of young people across the country taking part in exciting dance performance and learning experiences each year. At YFX, guest performances from the National Youth Dance Companies of England, Scotland and Wales will join youth dance groups selected to represent their home region or nation in an exhilarating weekend celebration of young people’s dance. Attendees take part in dazzling showcase performances on stage and screen as well as enjoying inspiring workshops, masterclasses and talks from some of the UK’s leading dance practitioners.

Tickets for England’s National Youth Dance Company (NYDC) at Sadler’s Wells Theatre are currently on sale. Tickets for Young Creatives, Making Moves and the U.Dance National Festival showcase performances will go on sale in 2025. All ticketed events will be priced at £7.50 for under 16s, £10 for 16 – 30 year olds through Sadler’s Wells Barclays Dance Pass, and £15 for adults. A multi-buy will be available that will offer a 20% discount should you book 2 or more events.

England’s National Youth Dance Company (NYDC) and Making Moves are supported by Barclays