Oct
09
2014
On my toes: ballet shoes and bobby pins
By Lauren Scally.
My passion for dance
Just like many other little girls, I had a dream to becoming a ballerina. So, when I was three years old, I took classes and found a love for ballet shoes and bobby pins and this is where it all began…
My love for dance came at a young age when the Spice Girls were number 1 in the UK and I wanted to be Ginger Spice. I found myself twisting and twirling around to Wannabe in front of the mirror and going over the eight-count in my head. My passion then began to grow as I was introduced to films like Dirty Dancing, Footloose and Billy Elliot. When I was eight years old I attended the Royal Ballet School in Covent Garden where I was awarded distinctions in performance ballet and tap dancing.
Putting my talents to use
Growing up I thought about how I could use my talent and put it into something that would still keep me dancing whilst juggling other aspects of life, like work. I decided to set-up a dance club and I now run this mid-week for 20+ students aged 3-11 years.
Along with my work responsibilities at the Centre, I also have to spend my time choosing and editing the right music for my dancers, memorising choreography, practising moves and demonstrating these in class to form routines.
It takes drive, enthusiasm and determination doing the work and finding the time so I keep a record of my thoughts, goals, progress and experiences in dance to take my students to the next level. Each week I base my dance on an inspirational quote and apply it to the way our body movements express emotion.
Inspiring others
For my ‘tiny tots’ class, children aged 3-5 years, I call this ‘creative movement’ rather than a ballet class. For children aged six and above I refer to it as ‘pre-ballet’ – this is when they are usually ready to stand at the barre and learn the mechanics of alignment and ballet positions.
As kids around these ages don’t have a very long attention span I structure my 'creative movement' classes. I do a lot of repetition and I have found it makes the children feel more comfortable if they have a good idea of what to expect. I begin by sitting on the floor in a circle and singing several songs that some of the children may already know or can pick up quickly. I then add movements to this like ‘open, shut, clap’. I work on flexing and pointing the toes using the hands and arms to suggest that they are flying like a bird or superman.
My main focus as a teacher is not just to look at ballet training but also their educational needs. I look at what’s happening in the education field: current theory and practice. I look at the students’ needs and find out how I can best fulfil their potential and ambitions.
I love ballet and I hope my great love of this art can be passed onto the students I teach – whether they are going to develop as ballerinas, follow a path into the West End or use their admiration of the human body’s ability to turn, leap, shimmy, arabesque and pirouette their way through life.
Lauren Scally is the Centre’s Team Administrator. Lauren is responsible for processing Open Programme bookings, setting up training rooms and helping to keep the Centre looking remarkably spotless.
