THIS year promises to be the biggest and most exciting yet for the Weymouth Dance Festival.

More than 200 young performers are set to dance at the increasingly successful event, which is now in its fifth year.

Dance schools from Weymouth, Portland and Dorchester are appearing and some are also travelling from Poole and Bournemouth.

As a special surprise, a number are also coming from the prestigious Stanmore College in London.

Festival organiser Lis Gray said: “We are really pleased, because this is the fifth year of the festival and we have had a fantastic response to it.

“It is being held over one weekend as usual this year but if it keeps on growing, then maybe we will stretch it over two next year.”

Lis added that the festival offered local young dancers a long-awaited chance to perform on their home territory.

“Before we started the festival here, dancers had to go to Paignton and other places to take part in competitions like this, which seemed a shame as we have so many dance schools in the area.

“It is great for the dancers now to be able to perform close to home. It is nice for them to have a dance platform where they can perform. There is so much talent to be seen here – and some dancers who took part in last year’s festival are now at dance college, studying in London. Others will go on to the West End.”

The dancers taking part are aged from three upwards and they will take part in 76 different classes over the bank Holiday weekend. They will dance solos, duets and in trios, quartets and large groups.

The adjudicator will be Marion Roberts from Southampton.

Lis added: “New dance schools are coming each year and there are more than 500 different dances to be seen across all styles.”

The fifth Weymouth dance Festival takes place from Saturday to Monday, May 2 to 4 in the Kimmeridge Theatre at Weymouth College in Newstead Road, Weymouth.

The festival runs from 10.10am to 9pm on the Saturday, 9am to 9pm on Saturday and 9am until 6pm on the Monday.