Young dancer wins chance to train at UK school

The Cecchetti Society of Dance Teachers in Malta has just brought the curtain down on its year-long celebrations to mark 40 years of the Cecchetti method.

Celebrating Cecchetti came to an end last month with auditions for the new Kate Simmons Dance Award, in memory of Eileen Langman.

Five candidates applied for the audition, conducted by The Dance Work principal Theresa Lungaro-Mifsud and judged by Gillian Hurst, the visiting Cecchetti examiner who is the assistant head of dance at the Kate Simmons Dance College, in Cheshire, UK.

While all the participants were commended and offered a place in the prestigious dance school, the scholarship was awarded to a dynamic young dancer - Andrea Galea, a student of Alison Bird.

Ms Galea will be starting her professional dance training at Kate Simmons Dance College in early September.

The festivities had started in July 2005, with an international summer school at The Dance Workshop with special guest teacher Kate Simmons leading a dynamic group of dance teachers including Ms Lungaro-Mifsud, Tanya Bayona, Francesca Abela Tranter, Deborah Mc Namara, Claire Cassola and Pamela Kerr.

Other guest teachers included Renzo Spiteri (percussion) and Malcolm Galea (drama).

The course, a spokesman said, was a success not only from a participation point of view, but also in terms of furthering links between the Kate Simmons Dance College and Maltese dance schools.

Following discussions between the directors of the two schools, an annual scholarship is being offered to a Maltese candidate studying Cecchetti Ballet at vocational level.

In October, Cecchetti Day, under the patronage of Ms Bayona, was celebrated with a whole day of classes held at The Dance Workshop.

An exhibition was also set up at St James Cavalier, in Valletta, commemorating the life and work of Enrico Cecchetti, an Italian ballet dancer and founder of the Cecchetti dance method.

The Cecchetti Method of Dance has thrived on the island with 11 dance schools in Malta and one in Gozo, the spokesman said.

Several students are furthering their studies in professional dance schools and, in Malta, thousands sit for their ballet examinations annually.

Malta can boast of having one examiner, two fellowship holders and three holders of the Enrico Cecchetti Diploma - the highest qualifications as teachers and dancers, and nine other teachers who hold their licentiate certificate in dance teaching.

Over the years, five International Cecchetti Awards have been given to outstanding teachers namely: Ms Bayona, Lifetime Achievement Award 2000; Ms Lungaro-Mifsud, Pat Hardy Award 2000 and CCA Scholarship, US 2006; Ms Bird, the Greta Salmonson Award 2002; and Ms Kerr, the Cecchetti Group Award 2005.