Over 20 school groups of young dancers  will take to the stage this month as part of City of York Council's eleventh Annual Schools' Dance Festival.

The theme for this year's festival, which will be held Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 November at Central Hall, University of York, is 'Rhythm and Rituals' and all the groups have interpreted this in different ways.

The groups have been working on their dances since September. Some schools where inspired by the circle dances shown to them by  Karen Michelson York's Circle Dance teacher, and others have devised their own pieces from scratch with the direction of class teachers. Two schools have worked with dance students from York St John University to perfect their performances.

This year's festival is the second to be organised under the direction of Edward Lynch, who joined the council's arts and culture team last October as a dance consultant.

Edward, said: "I am impressed by the standard and quality of dance in York schools. Dance is inspiring and entertaining, and a great opportunity for all young people to combine creative expression with physical activity. I look forward to building new partnerships to promote dance in York and make it accessible to everyone and I believe that education is a good starting point.

"I am really excited that the Schools' Dance Festival offers groups a unique opportunity to perform. I know from my own experience as a performer that the young dancers taking part will get a huge sense of achievement from the thrill of performing. It also increases their confidence and gives them new performance skills. I'm sure everyone involved in the festival will have a lot of fun."

Performances will be held at 2pm on the Saturday and Sunday. Tickets for the performances are priced at £3.50, or £2 for concessions, and can be booked by calling 01904 554660 or are available on the door.