BBC Young Dancer 2017

North London’s dance house is hosting the grand final of BBC Young Dance 2017, just as it did for the inaugural year of the competition in 2015.

Then the search for the UK’s most gifted dancer aged 16 to 20 whittled down crowds of talented entrants to just six grand finalists. After some dazzling performances, 17-year-old contemporary dancer Connor Scott was announced as BBC Young Dancer 2015 by the competition's ambassador, Carlos Acosta.

Connor continues to thrive and now trains full-time at Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance.

The BBC has broadened the age range for the 2017 cohort to include dancers aged 21 but, otherwise, the format remains the same.

In October 2016, youngsters nationwide were invited to enter one of four categories: Ballet, Contemporary, South Asian Dance or Street Dance.

Eventually 20 category finalists (five in each dance style) had the opportunity to show off their best moves in the heats, which are being aired weekly on BBC Four.

Category winners can look forward to dancing as Grand Finalists at Sadler’s Wells. They will perform for a judging panel of dance experts (Royal Ballet Director Kevin O’Hare, choreographers Marc Brew, Kate Prince, and Jasmin Vardimon, Kathak dancer Nahid Siddiqui, and dance artist and administrator Kenneth Tharp); a packed auditorium; and scores of television viewers who will tune in to a live broadcast on BBC Two.

Each Grand Finalist will premiere a new solo created for them by a leading young choreographer, and dance a solo and duet. They will also all dance together in a new group number.

The first two dancers to qualify for the final were Rhys Antoni Yeomans in the Ballet category winner and Jodelle Douglas, the Street Dance category winner.

They are being joined by the soon-to-be-revealed South Asian and Contemporary Dance category winners – and up to two wild card competitors.

The grand final will see them all take to Sadler’s Wells’ stage for the ultimate dance-off in a bid to claim the title of BBC Young Dancer 2017.

We’ll be watching, and hope you will as well.