It’s (almost) every little girl’s dream to be a ballerina. Most little girls begin ballet lessons when they are young and either love it, continuing to dance well into high school, or give up early and find a new dream.
Ballet is an art that requires many skills: patience, tenacity, strength, balance, musicality and self-discipline, to name a few. Bringing all of these together, a dancer needs to come to class with a clear head and ready to learn, as ballet requires full concentration. A well-rounded dancer has excellent core strength for pointe work and complicated routines, and an ear for music. Perfecting these skills takes years of hard work.
At the Cape Ballet Centre (CBC), on the corner of Hof and Orange Streets, dancers of all ages, sizes and walks of life come together to learn these skills and have fun while doing it. It’s a wonderful Centre to have in our OKCID area – so here’s a bit more information about it:
Founder, Evelyne Aregger, was born in Lucerne, Switzerland, where she discovered her love of ballet. Later in life she moved to Cologne, Germany, to complete her Teaching Diploma (TD RAD) and teach ballet. An accomplished dancer but needing new challenges, she moved to Cape Town in 2005 to teach ballet to underprivileged children in the townships. In 2007, she started the CBC teaching both Royal Academy of Dance and Russian Vaganova methods, and has made a name for herself on the Cape Town ballet scene.
Classes are offered to everyone from pre-school children to adults, and very beginner to advanced dancers. The classes are technically challenging at all levels, led by talented instructors enabling all dancers to learn and develop at their own pace in a positive and inspiring environment.
The adult classes are particularly interesting as here you will find men and women who have never danced before taking on the challenge. There is a wonderful sense of camaraderie and dancers are encouraged to succeed and move up the levels. The CBC offers training for RAD ballet exams too, so children and adults alike can prove themselves amongst their ballet peers, if they so wish. However, in general the atmosphere is relaxed and enjoyable, with a focus on fun and self-improvement.
The CBC will be performing “Cirque du Ballet” at Mountain Road Primary School on 5 and 6 December 2014, bringing over 120 dancers together for a weekend of entertainment and beauty!
Find out more about the show on their Facebook page here: www.facebook.com/CapeBalletCentre, or visit their website for information about children and adult classes: www.capeballetcentre.co.za.