Dance journey
Growing up in the Adelaide Hills, I was often in the paddock - talking with the animals, singing songs, dancing, and performing to the cows.
When I was 4 years old, there was a pinnacle moment, when I observed the Tap Dogs on the television. I was so quickly mesmerised by the percussion, the movement and their energy!
The predecessor to “Happy Feet”.
This is one of my earliest inspirations in life, it led me to my first dance class shortly after. At the time, I was enrolled in one Tap class every week and had my first stage performance the same year. After my first showcase, I begged my family to enrol me in more classes, I became addicted to the performance life instantly!
My dance school at the time didn’t have many other tap classes, so if I wanted more showtime, I had to try new styles. To my disgust, I joined two Jazz classes. This secured my place in two showcases the following year, and plenty more routines. In the following years I kept my stage presence as the focus, bringing my high energy spirit to every class.
Before school and netball commitments took over at age 9, I had the opportunity to play centre stage in my final showcase “I had a dream". Who would have thought I would still be chasing this dream so many years later?
Movement is such a valuable part of being human and I believe it can be such a healthy way to process emotions, unwind and support our mental health and wellbeing.
Whilst I have taken some time from dance, I have not stopped moving. Instead, I have been learning lots of new tricks including flow arts. In the last two years I have started juggling, spinning Poi, playing with the Diavolo and the Dragon staff. Hopefully one day I will be able to play with fire as a performing artist too. Perhaps with the tap shoes...
You can take the dancer out of the performance, but you cannot take the performer out of the dancer.
I often create characters, boasting fancy fashion, face paint and dance on the street. Making it my personal goal to encourage every person to dance like no one is watching, especially when they say they “can’t”.
When I am not moving my body, I am challenging my mind, frequenting the local spoken poetry nights, currently studying creative writing and creative arts therapies.
If I am not painting, drawing, writing, dancing singing or reading about philosophies, please someone check on me!
Feel free to ask me about my many hobbies when you see me walking around the studios, I’d love to share my experiences and hear about yours.
Career / Approach
After such a long break from dance classes and now missing my ACL, I am excited to say, I am returning to my personal passion for tap dancing and encouraging others to express themselves at Dragonfly Dance.
In addition to this, I feel extremely grateful to be re entering the dance world with such an inviting and welcoming space that I even get to work in. My inner child is very proud!
I am looking forward to meeting the new dancers and the experienced ones on their journeys and support their progress towards their own personal goals.
Qualifications