SWEET SILVER

An enchanting story, beautiful choreography, an exquisite score. Be transported to the magical Land of Sweets, as Leisa’s School of Dancing presents a special gala performance featuring Act II of The Nutcracker, alongside other exciting dance works, to celebrate 25 years early next month.

WORDS RITA HORANYI

WAY BACK IN 2000, Leisa Jackson decided to amalgamate the dance school she was running with another local dance studio to create what is today known as Leisa’s School of Dancing.

Fast forward 25 years, and this respected training institution is still going strong, cultivating the skills and passions of a new generation of young Territorians.

“I still keep in contact with [students] that I taught way back then. It’s great to be able to find out what they’re doing as they turn into adults … and all the things they did after they left ballet,’ Jackson says.

“If they are still living in the Territory … and they have their own children, the best compliment is that they bring their kids back to you as students.”

To celebrate reaching a quarter of century, the school presents a special gala performance, showcasing the talents of its students and connecting to its history. In addition to a performance of Act II of beloved ballet, The Nutcracker, starring the school’s youngest dancers alongside senior dancers and teachers, the event features a performance of the ethereal ballet Les Sylphides, a toe-tapping jazz performance, and a piece choreographed by Jackson herself called Body Sculptures.

Les Sylphides was first performed by Duprada Dance Company – the Mparntwe/Alice Springs-based company founded by Jackson’s mother Lynne Hanton, that frequently collaborates with Leisa’s School of Dancing – and is a sophisticated ballet that offers an exciting challenge for young performers.

“The mood, the stance, is very different to what they would normally be doing at their age … I’ve never done [Les Sylphides] here in Darwin … It’s the first thing I was in on points way back in 1984 at the start of [Duprada Dance] in Alice Springs.”

Likewise, Body Sculptures, has a long history with the school and Duprada. Choreographed by Jackson to music acquired at an international workshop attended by full-time students of the school, the piece was first performed by Duprada Dance on tour in Singapore in 2007.

“No one in the company at the present time has done [the ballet] … They then have done something from the archives and put it on stage.”

It’s a fitting way to honour the legacy of Leisa’s School of Dancing, and reflects the work the school does connecting dancers to tradition, while developing them in new ways.

Closing with a rousing jazz finale, don’t pass up the chance to be wowed by the full gamut of up-and-coming Territory dance talent.

25th Anniversary Gala Performance
WHEN SAT 1 NOV | 6.30-8.45PM
AT AANT CENTRE
COST $42 | $37 MEMB/CONC $32 CHILD
INFO yourcentre.com.au

_{Image: Janelle Fisher}