A Stalybridge student is embracing his creative talents after being chosen as a finalist for the Manchester International Festival. 

Kristian Darby, a year 11 pupil at Copley Academy has struck gold in his journey to fulfil a career in dance after he received news that he was named a finalist for the highly regarded Manchester festival. 

He will be among other competition finalists to display their talents this Saturday in Festival Square. 

This opportunity was one that Kristian grabbed with both hands when he found out that the Manchester United Foundation had partnered with the festival to celebrate the exceptional talent of young people across Greater Manchester. 

Pupils from their partner schools were invited to compete for a place at the festival which will see them judged by a selection of faces including Manchester United legend Gary Neville. 

Manchester United Foundation have been proud to work with Copley Academy, delivering pupil mentoring programmes and employability programmes to empower students in achieving their goals. 

Kristian is now on board to achieve one of his goals. Having developed a love for dance at a young age, he decided to enter the competition to share his love of dance with a wider audience. 

“I feel the competition will be a platform for my career in dance as I think it will allow people to notice me!

“I also felt that I could really bring my style of dance to the competition and offer something different,” he said. 

Kristian has had a huge amount of support from staff at Copley, who were also thrilled to hear of his success. 

“The training process has been really good. My dance teacher at school, Lucia Pearson, has been so helpful and has helped me to develop my piece,” he says. 

He has also had support from Assistant Principal Jo Tidbury who has helped to coordinate the event with the festival organisers and the school. 

The young dancer is beyond excited to give it all he’s got on the big stage this year, a year which may be the beginning of his prosperous career. 

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