On Sunday 5^th June Kinetika and Jeanefer Jean-Charles Associates took to The Mall in London to present The Thank You Dance in the Pageant to honour Her Majesty The Queen as the first British Monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee with 70 years of service. The Thank You Dance has been created by co-artistic directors, Ali Pretty (designer) and Jeanefer Jean-Charles MBE (choreographer).

The Thank You Dance then returned to Thurrock on the 25 June for the finale of the T100 Festival 2022 and the Port Open Day, including all the Thurrock key workers that appeared on The Mall.

It is a Thank You to the Queen for 70 years of public service and a Thank You to all those who selflessly contribute to society, looking after our communities and laying the foundation for a better life for generations to come. The Thank You Dance joined The Pageant which wound through the streets of Westminster and along The Mall past Buckingham Palace telling the story of Her Majesty’s reign and our transforming society over this period.

The Thank You Dance included:

• 28 key workers from across Thurrock and Milton Keynes carrying 14 6m high scrolls depicting a key worker representing the sector they work in.

• Each keyworker that appeared in the Pageant was nominated to be a part of the celebration by their local community. Discover the key worker stories on the Kinetika website: https://kinetika.co.uk/pjp-key-worker. They were accompanied by 14 professional dancers led by Jeanefer Jean-Charles Associates who interacted and celebrated the key workers at the front of the section.

• A giant costume depicting The Queen of the People and the Planet performed by Yewande Kannike from One Community in Tilbury – accompanied by Valerie Muzelenga, a nurse from Thurrock, and Shobna Pahiar, a volunteer at the MKHA in Milton Keynes, two heroines representing the four nations of the UK.

• 100 volunteers (50 from Thurrock and 50 from Milton Keynes) each carrying a flag designed and made by community groups from their area, telling stories of their community.

• 60 young dancers (30 from Dimensions Dance Company at South Essex College in Thurrock and 30 from Arts 1 School of Performance at USP College in Milton Keynes) with 60 silk scarves depicting endangered species from across the world

• 30 young dancers from Impact Dance, London with 10 silk scarves of endangered species, who joined other young people later in the dance to showcase a total of 70 endangered species.