Children from across York will take to the stage at York Theatre Royal for a Jorvik Dance Project performance that promises to be one of the highlights of this year's Dance York festival.

The Jorvik Dance Project, which is run by the Jorvik Sports Partnership,  aims to increase young people's involvement in sport though dance and is funded by a Big Lottery grant. It has joined up with 31 primary schools, six community groups and six secondary schools to provide after school dance clubs.

The dance clubs have proved to be one of the most successful activities run by the partnership, with a total of 350 members. In one primary school 77 pupils turned up and the dance sessions had to be split into two groups to cope with demand.

Six months on, the dancers have been practising very hard for their final performances at York Theatre Royal, which will take place on Wednesday 27 June at 5.45pm and 7.15pm as part of the action-packed Dance York programme.

A montage of pictures and film taken at the rehearsals will introduce the performances. This will show the journey that the dancers have taken from turning up at their first dance session to gaining the self-assurance to perform on stage at York Theatre Royal.

Kevin Davies, the Jorvik Partnership's development manager said: "The most exciting thing about this project has been the dramatic effect on the individual pupils taking part. I have received feedback from a number of parents about how much confidence this programme has given their child. Some of these pupils, who are shy in the classroom, have come into their own and now have the confidence to take to the stage and perform in front of an audience."