Shirley Ballas is "worried" about the future of dance.
Shirley Ballas wants to get the country dancing
The 63-year-old star serves as head judge on 'Strictly Come Dancing' and "loves" being able to watch celebrities discover new skills with their professional partners on the BBC competition but has noted that the audience at home won't be keeping fit like the participants and wants to "change" the way dance is taught in the education system.
She is quoted by the Daily Mirror newspaper as saying: "As 'Strictly' Head Judge, one of the things I love most about the show is seeing people discover the joy of dancing.
The trouble is, 'Strictly' doesn't always get viewers off their bottoms and onto the dance floor, to enjoy the fantastic benefits and pleasure that it brings.
I want to change that, and I hope my new role as President of the Imperial Society of Teaching of Dancing will help by getting more people on their feet.
"Dance could be our saviour but right now it is not in a good place, and it makes me want to weep.
"I always tell people how my mum worked her fingers to the bone so that I could have classes and gorgeous costumes, but the one thing we were never short of was inspirational teachers.
"What really worries me is that young dancers in the very near future will not be able to say the same thing. Dance has all but gone from schools and higher education and that will have knock-on effects for the number of teachers in the future.
The dance champion - who will return to the 'Strictly Come Dancing' panel alongside Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, and Anton Du Beke on September 14 - also believes that "every single child" should have the opportunity to experience dance because it can be of benefit to everyone.
She said: "I also worry about the fantastic 'backstage' teams who are disappearing in so many places.
"Every single school should be connected with the best local dance experts so that every single child can experience top quality dance. As the ISTD's Dance for All report says: "Dance is good for everyone, everywhere, no matter who you are." If,
together, we are going to take the nation's health and ambitions for
growth seriously, we need to get Britain on the dancefloor."
Tagged in Craig Revel Horwood