Summer and Winter Intensives with Melbourne City Ballet

Melbourne City Ballet (MCB), still a new company, is quickly going from strength to strength. Earlier this year they ran a five-day full-time summer school offering classical and contemporary classes, company repertoire, workshopping, solos and classical repertoire.

“Our summer intensive provided many young artists with the opportunity to polish their technique and work together as a team to create a production for their family and friends,” said artistic director Michael Pappalardo. “Many of our young dancers make long lasting friendships which become important connections later in their careers.”

Participating dance students were split into two groups; 10 – 15 years and 15+, and enjoyed classes conducted by company members. Throughout the week they also got the chance to discuss issues – including audition skills and “how to get a job” with Pappalardo and other company artists.

“Melbourne City Ballet is a team/family style organisation and we work hard to make sure all dancers are supported and welcome into the space and environment. We encourage communication and open dialogue about dance and technical skills, ensuring an interactive environment where dancers can discover how movement best works for themselves.

MCB’s intensive classes are capped at 25, so that the teachers are able to spend as much time as they can with each dancer.

At the end of this year’s summer school week there was a small showing so that parents could watch what their children had been learning through the intensive.

“Generally, our intensive week’s focus is on choreography seen in one of our upcoming seasons,” said Pappalardo. “As our initial season this year was the very challenging Napoli, we thought it best to focus on the classic ballet Paquita, featuring a full ensemble and pas de deux excerpts. Each age group worked together to compose their own contemporary work for the performance. Contemporary dancers were also treated to choreography from our 2015 work Grind.”

“I always enjoy seeing upcoming artists from across Australia working with our company artists over the summer intensive, particularly those previously unfamiliar with our organisation. We pride ourselves on offering a fun and supportive week of learning and seeing dancers reconnect with their love of movement makes it worthwhile,” Pappalardo added.

The students had great feedback, saying:

“I really loved it! I met new really great people and the standard was challenging.” – Tianna Kundert.

“We made lots of new friends and was a really good to get back into shape after the holidays.” – Connor Fisher.

“There were a fair few steps I learnt for the first time during the week. I found Paquita the most interesting.” – Joshua Flenley.

Melbourne City Ballet also run a winter school, which Pappalardo says is an even better opportunity to work with the company, as there are generally fewer dancers to the event, meaning more individual attention for each student. Information regarding the winter intensive is available via www.melbournecityballet.com.au/education or by contacting the company office on (03) 9943 6496.