Lord of the dance!

Photo: Anthony Miller

DANCE MAN: Danny Price

OLDHAM dance supremo Danny Price kicked his heels for joy when he heard he had been nominated for a Pride in Oldham award.

“How lovely. I never expected that — I’m really chuffed,” said the renowned tutor who has used his love of dance to help to improve the lives of thousands of Oldham children.

“I don’t care if I don’t win, it’s just lovely to be nominated,” he added.

Danny (43) turned his back on a promising career in musical theatre in the West End to follow his passion for choreography nearly two decades ago.

The father-of three harnessed his energy and enthusiasm for dance and, fuelled by the belief that he could make a difference, became a dynamic teacher whose popularity with local youngsters is almost legendary.

“I’ll still be loving dance when I’m 100 years old,” he laughed. “For a long time I have been using dance to engage young people, and I now work with the police and the NHS to do that.”

His motto is: “Anyone can dance, everyone can dance, so let’s dance.”

The Jamaican-born dance maestro, who lives in Derker with his wife Jennifer and their three children, aged 11, eight and five, works for Oldham Sports Development. His life has been dance, and he has taught in New York, Boston and Connecticut through his connection with American choreographer Jimmy Locust, who is famous for his work with pop stars Janet Jackson and Paula Abdul.

Danny was UK breakdance champion in his teens, has helped choreograph performances by Madonna, and danced in a film with David Bowie.

He was nominated for a Pride in Oldham award by Faye Mills, Teresa Tuppman and the OL8 Steppers Team from ARC (Abbeyhills, Alt and Roundthorn Community Centre). They said: “Danny is a shining example to all the children he teaches, not only in dance, but also in teaching them to respect, to interact with each other, to gain self esteem, to understand the need for healthy eating and to have pride in all they achieve.”