Northern Soul: dance, camera, action – in pictures
Elaine Constantine's first feature film recreates the sultry dance clubs of northern England where she first fell in love with the underground world of 1970s soul music. Here, she snaps the cast as they practise their moves
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Photographer Elaine Constantine's fascination with northern soul began in 1976, when she attended a Lancashire youth club to find her schoolmates busting moves she'd never seen before to music she'd never heard
Photograph: Elaine Constantine
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Constantine was hypnotised by what she saw. 'These were boys who to me had been quite ordinary – suddenly they were fine young things in a glorious world'
Photograph: Elaine Constantine
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With her film, currently in production, Constantine aims to convey the spinning, dripping, highly charged experience of abandoning yourself to soul music. 'It's hard to sum up in words alone. I knew a film would give anyone the experience first-hand'
Photograph: Elaine Constantine
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Dancers are put through their paces as they rehearse; not everyone will make the cut
Photograph: Elaine Constantine
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Some of the dancers are professionals, some are actors - and around 20% are already northern soul fans
Photograph: Elaine Constantine
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'Most kids who come to the classes had no knowledge of what northern soul is. They came to be extras,' says Constantine. 'Some are well hooked, and they ain't faking it'
Photograph: Elaine Constantine
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Dancers go wild to the euphoric sounds of Tami Lynn's I'm Gonna Run Away from You and Chubby Checker's Discotheque
Photograph: Elaine Constantine
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'Sometimes I go to the 100 Club and dos up north,' says Constantine, 'I'm on the dancefloor and I'll spot one of our kids dancing opposite me! Some are more into it than I am'
Photograph: Elaine Constantine
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