About Laucinda Roberts

Background – In the early nineties, Laucinda was trained at the London Studio Centre where she studied Ballet, Jazz, Tap, Contemporary Dance, Music and Drama. It was during this time that she performed in the West End and toured with a Theatre Company to Europe. Laucinda has been teaching, performing and choreographing dance for 37 years but, during this time, has also sung professionally including session work for Universal Records and as a lead vocalist for jazz/folk cover bands. In dance, she has worked in a wide variety of areas and genres such as delivering dance classes in the community and schools / private sector, running dance events for all ages and abilities, rural arts, council work and musical theatre dance work through to teaching and performing on the international circuit at a high level.

 

Ballet – Laucinda is a Royal Academy of Dance Silver Swans Licensee. She has been shortlisted for the RAD Well-being Inclusion Champion award, awards are taking place in July 2026, and was also shortlisted the RAD Dance for Well-being award in 2024. Through her Silver Swans classes, Laucinda aims to create an inclusive, welcoming and uplifting environment for people of varied ages, backgrounds, abilities and health needs. Her Silver Swans programme now supports around 140 regular participants, with further expansion planned. She also works occasionally with community physiotherapy teams and social prescribers, and received two post-pandemic wellbeing grants from the Friends of Saint Monica’s Trust near York to help launch the classes.

Laucinda also delivers seated dance sessions in care homes alongside demonstrations from regular Silver Swans dancers. One participant living with advanced Parkinson’s disease attended classes for two years against considerable odds, with her clinical team recognising the profound physical and emotional benefits dance brought her. A video of this participant at the barre was later selected by the Royal Academy of Dance for use in its marketing.

Each year, Laucinda contributes to the York Older People’s Assembly Festival and the International Day of Older Persons through free tasters and public performances at York Theatre Royal.

 

Her passion for inclusive dance is deeply personal. Following a diagnosis of Crohn’s disease in 2012, and a short period using a wheelchair, returning to dance in remission reinforced her belief in the transformative benefits of dance for people living with health conditions and disabilities, an approach further informed by insights from physiotherapy and applied health research.

She has taught ballet on children’s dance experience/activity weeks for The Galtres Centre (as part of a programme for what was Hambleton District Council), for North Yorkshire County Council’s youth programmes and for White Rose Theatre Arts (including musical theatre choreography).

Laucinda has completed a Dance For Parkinson’s course.

 

Ballroom – In 2013 Laucinda was inspired to teach some classes for those who are more elderly or recovering from injury. She trained with Matthew Cutler from BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing (winner in 07’ with Alesha Dixon) to create her own brand ‘Gently Ballroom’. This class involves elegant, gentle paced, recreational Ballroom and Latin dance steps (such as the Waltz, Tango and Cha Cha Cha) without the need for a partner. Laucinda ran this class weekly for 11 years and now offers it for special bookings. Although aimed at over 55s, under 55s are also welcome. The regular clients were all aged between 50 and 91. Laucinda has also delivered this concept as a course plus tasters / experience days to City of York Council’s ‘Engage over 50s’ programme, Hambleton District Council, Rural Arts programmes, for WI groups and for North Yorkshire County Council as well.

Salsa / Mambo & other Latin dance – In the year 2000 Laucinda started specialising to teach and perform Salsa and gained her UKA Licentiate certificate. Laucinda met her husband Gareth while he was training at The Northern School of Contemporary Dance in 2001 and, together, they became international standard dance partners teaching and performing and launched a company called ‘Encuentro Latino’. Although they specialised in New York Style Cross Body Salsa (choosing to perform Eddie Torres On2 Mambo timing), they also taught Cross Body On1 timing and Cuban style. In June 2003 they received a grant from the Arts Council Of England to train with highly sought after Latin Dance companies and instructors in New York such as Frankie Martinez of Abakua and Santo Rico to name but a few. They went on to teach and perform on the international circuit and became very well known on the national Congress scene making 9 international appearances. They have also regularly guest taught / performed at events all over the north of the UK from Birmingham to Newcastle, Manchester to Hull and ran weekly classes, socials with monthly clubs and events for 21 years. They now teach occasional workshops, private lessons and are still available to hire for private events / shows if their schedules allow.

Other Latin dances / experience – Laucinda and her husband have also trained in and taught the following: Afro-Latin Cha Cha Cha, Afro-Cuban Rumba, Pachanga, Samba No Pe’, Bachata and Merengue.

 

Understanding learning environments – Laucinda is also a qualified Teaching Assistant, plus has additional sports coaching experience and a qualification, both of which come in handy when working in learning environments. Laucinda has coached and taught both dance and sport in schools and universities since 1998.