200 young dancers from across the North East, aged between 8 and 18, auditioned for English Youth Ballet’s production of Swan Lake at Sunderland Empire on Wednesday 29 March.
“I am very pleased that we are returning to the North East to audition for Swan Lake, our most dramatic ballet,” said Janet Lewis MBE, Director of English Youth Ballet. “I will be looking for dancers who clearly enjoy their dancing. The audition is not all about getting the steps right. We look for dancers with personality and a positive approach. It is most rewarding to see the potential in the young dancers.”
First through the doors to audition was Niamh Dunne (12) who attends St Robert of Newminster School in Washington. “I am quite nervous,” she said. “I do lots of dancing and ballet is my favourite. It’s so graceful. I dance three times a week and on a Sunday in preparation for a performance at Disneyland Paris.”
Those selected at the audition will take part in an intensive and rigorous rehearsal schedule for the production. They will rehearse for ten days at weekends and after school.
Rehearsals will take place at a local high school and the company use three large rehearsal spaces simultaneously. The young dancers are treated like professionals and each rehearsal starts with a company warm-up class. Different rehearsals then take place in each of the three rehearsal spaces and then all the cast join each other for a run-through of everything learnt that day.
The cast are coached by EYB’s eight international principal dancers who also dance the leading roles in the performances.
English Youth Ballet’s Swan Lake is at Sunderland Empire on 16 and 17 June.