Ballet—‘fun, trust and camaraderie’

Press, 27 January 1988, Page 18

Ballet—‘fun, trust and camaraderie’

Ballet is a booming industry drawing on a wealth of dance talent but some features of New Zealand’s dance scene puzzle classical ballet tutor, Donald Macleod. \ Many New Zealandtrained dancers still believe overseas companies and training are the best while foreign dancers clamour to dance here and many join our national company, he says. “Only a small proportion of males in the Royal New Zealand Ballet are New Zealand born and trained.” Mr Macleod is in Christchurch this week to tutor at the Christchurch Ballet Society’s residential

school at Lincoln College. ‘ An Australian, Mr MacJ leod has been teaching [ and performing in New ! Zealand for seven years and attained the rank of senior soloist with the • Royal New Zealand Ballet ■ before switching to tutor--5 ing full time. He has been t teaching at the New Zea- > land School of Dance in i Wellington for the last two years and believes it is essential for teachers to have been professional dancers themselves. “It’s also important for there to be more male teachers so boys can be taught by someone who can say look I’ve felt that way too.” Originally taking ballet classes because his

mother thought it would improve his posture, Mr Macleod found he did not like being told what to do and prodded by teachers’ fingers. But after sticking with it he was moved to a higher class and found the attractive young girls in his class an added incentive.

Fun, trust and camaraderie are qualities he tries to bring to his glasses — without unnecessary strictness.

“Yes, it is a life of dedication and self sacrifice and it sometimes hurts your body but you can get past that to a sense of freedom. Different teachers can see promising traits in a student and draw them out.”