Choreographer from Irish dance troupe speaks about life after BGT and their busy summer schedule

Innova, the Portstewart based Irish dance group that shot to fame after beating thousands of hopefuls to reach the final of ITV’s hit talent show ‘Britain’s Got Talent’, have revealed that they will be performing in Spain and in Tel Aviv, Israel, this summer.

One of the group’s principal choreographers, Catherine Lamont, spoke about preparing to perform at one of Spain’s’ biggest Celtic festivals.

She also revealed that the group - which boasts many Ballymoney dancers in its ranks - now has around 100 dancers - both male and female.

“Britain’s Got Talent did us a big favour,” admitted the talented 25-year-old Portstewart woman.

“It has opened up so many doors for us.

“Sometimes we just have to pinch ourselves, and ask if this is really happening.

“We have a really busy summer ahead - we are looking forward to performing at the Red Sails Festival here in Portstewart.

“We are all local girls, so it’s good to perform for local audiences.

“We rehearse here in Portstewart, so it’s good for us to be able to show local folk what we have been doing.

“There is always a good atmosphere at the Red Sails Festival, so we are delighted to be taking part for a third year.”

The dance teacher went on: “After that we are performing at a big Celtic Festival in Northern Spain, then at an event in Tel Aviv and after that we are putting on our first ever show in the Millennium Forum,” explained Catherine.

Describing the festival in Spain as ‘a bit like Glastonbury’, Catherine told: “There will be 17 of us travelling to Spain.

“This is a big Celtic Festival, and we are really pleased that we will have some new dancers with us.

“We will be there for five days, and will be performing at least once every day, so we are all really excited,” she said.

Speaking about their forthcoming Tel Aviv performance, Catherine explained: “Performing on television has opened up so many doors for us.

“We got an email from the festival organisers who said they had watched us performing on You Tube. The festival is called the Palestine International Festival of Music and Dance. We’re performing in Nazareth and Ramallah

“We’re delighted to be taking our act to another country,” said Catherine.

With little dancers joining Innova at the age of just three, Catherine says that the group now have around 100 dancers.

“It’s great to see the little ones coming in.

“They are so keen to learn, they are just like little stepping stones.

“Some of the younger dancers will be performing during the Millennium Forum show - ‘#Contempo’ on August 22.

Billed as Irish dancing with a twist, Catherine tell us more about the show:

“We did a similar show last year in the Riverside Theatre, which was a sell out, but this one is bigger and better.

“We will have a bigger cast this time, and for some of the younger dancers this will be their first time performing on stage in front of a big audience.

“It’s great for the younger ones to get to perform with the senior girls, we all have a great bond.

“We are all really busy rehearsing, and everyone is really excited about the show at the Forum.

“Tickets are already selling fast, so we are hoping that this one might be a sell out too.

“We will be performing some of the routines that we did on Britain’s Got Talent.

“But there will also be plenty of new routines, and we are sure that the audience will enjoy it.”

The local dancers will collaborate with hugely popular Celtic Italian band, The SIDH for their Londonderry performance.

The four piece band have a similar ethos to Innova whereby they write and perform traditional music with the aim to make it more modern and exciting. Tickets for #Contempo are on sale now, priced at £14, from the Millennium Forum’s box office or on the website.