WHEN Shakespeare said that all the world's a stage, he probably wasn't thinking of the Broomielaw.

But for almost two years one American has delighted and bewildered passers-by by dancing solo on Clydeside.

Now, after cutting a rug by the Clyde for almost 500 days, Kate Deeming has called the last dance.

Kate, 38, began dancing on the Clydeside Walkway in March 2010 and has done so almost every day since then; braving the elements, the scrutiny of confused commuters and the attentions of some of the less-than-savoury characters who hang about the river bank.

The Philadelphia-born performer, who has lived in Pollokshields for 12 years, said: "There will be no more dancing at the riverside, I'm afraid.

"I just wanted people to know, because I'm very sad about it.

"If I don't show up every day, I think some people will be disappointed, so I want to give them the opportunity to say goodbye."

Dancing to music on her iPod, Kate has become something of a local celebrity.

Office workers peer out of their windows to see her daily dance, while passers-by stop to talk.

Sometimes, people even join in.

She added: "Once, a homeless man came up to me when I was doing a Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers dance.

"We started dancing together and when we stopped, he said I was the first person to treat him as a human being in a very long time."

Now Kate is off to live in Argentina, where she intends write a book about her dancing adventures on the Broomielaw.

She added: "The big sky and the river are just magnificent. When the clouds move overhead, it becomes like a stage set.

"I would be bored just sitting in a studio, dancing in front of a mirror. I will really miss Glasgow."

jasper.hamill@ eveningtimes.co.uk

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