Over 60 dancers travelled from across the island on Saturday 11th March to High Points Youth Ballet in Belfast to audition for a Junior Company place in Six Dance Collective's upcoming production of White Doves.
The upcoming production places a Junior Company of aspiring pre-professional dancers on stage with two international soloists. The cast formed in these auditions will go on to make up principal, supporting and corps de ballet roles in the four day run this August.
Auditionees travelled from across Antrim, Tyrone, Down, Derry/Londonderry, Armagh, Donegal, Meath and Kildare to join the audition workshop on 11th March.
"We were overwhelmed with interest in the project and thrilled with the turn-out on audition day," says choreographer Ruaidhri Maguire who led the audition. "The standard in the room across the day is a credit to the future of dance across the island of Ireland."
Each audition group began with a technique class comprised of barre and centre work. This was then followed by learning extracts from the choreography.
A first of its kind
The auditions marked the beginning of a first for Belfast. Up until this point, aspiring dancers travelled to the south of Ireland and England to gain experience performing in ballet productions with new choreography. A primary aim of Six Dance Collective is to enhance access to high quality training for local dancers.
"Until now, only those who could afford to travel would gain this insight and experience. In offering Junior Company places in a Belfast-based production, we are hoping that this reduces the barriers to participating in high quality dance training."
White Doves runs for 4 performances from 3-5 August 2023 at the MAC Belfast. Subscribe to receive updates on ticket releases and upcoming events here.
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