Teachers in the Spotlight: Hilary Kaplan
In the December 2016/January 2017 issue of Dance Australia we ran a special "Teachers' Spotlight" feature, celebrating dance teachers from around Australia. Hilary Kaplan, co-principal and co-director of Alegria Dance Studios (NSW) is one of the wonderful teachers profiled in this special feature.
HILARY Kaplan was born in South Africa and trained there with Reina Berman for Ballet and Mercedes Molina (Spanish dance). At the age of 16, Hilary was offered positions both from Professor David Poole (CAPAB in Cape Town) and Denise Schultz (PACT Ballet, Johannesburg - now South African Ballet Theatre) to join their companies, but after attaining the Solo Seal and winning the RAD Bursary, she decided to first travel to London to train at the Royal Ballet School. On her return, she danced professionally with both these companies for a few years, before marrying and having a family (five daughters, none of whom are dancers). She then moved into teaching ballet and Spanish dance.
Dance Australia: Describe your pathway to becoming a teacher.
Hilary Kaplan: From a young age I loved helping my peers in the studio and my teachers often got me to assist them with various combinations or dances. Even at the Royal Ballet School my peers often used to ask me to assist them to perfect various steps and dances for competitions. Teaching was always innate.
DA: And your training?
HK: Teaching for me was very natural but I wanted to qualify with the highest teaching diplomas/degrees so that I felt completely confident that I was training the students correctly. I was fortunate to have brilliant teachers both in South Africa and at the Royal Ballet School, receiving the best training as a dancer and learning from my teachers how to approach the methodology of various steps and performance skills. I hold the RAD Advanced Teaching Diploma with distinction, Licenciate Diploma with honours (Cecchetti), MdB with distinction (Spanish Dance Society) as well as a BA in linguistics and diplomas in psychology, anatomy and history of ballet. Together with Archibald McKenzie, we have developed our own pedagogy drawing on the old masters’ techniques like Blasis, Cecchetti, Bournonville and Vaganova, which has proved to be very successful.
DA: What do you enjoy about being a teacher?
HK: I love being able to pass on my knowledge and see my students develop and blossom. I was born to teach. I am constantly engaged in trying to get the most out of every student so they can realise their full potential and, while most are not going to make a career in dance, the skills they learn in their training will stand them in good stead for any profession that they may take on in life. It also gives them an appreciation of something so beautiful and artistic. I am constantly striving to achieve better methods to gain the very best. I find this very exciting and rewarding.
DA: What is your proudest achievement as a teacher?
HK: I am always very proud of all my students when they achieve their best so I have had very many proud moments. I do have to say having trained Steven McRae and seen how he has developed as a dancer has to be an exceptionally proud moment. DA: What is something about you that your students would be surprised to know? HK: Even though I am tough in class, I am softy at heart.
Alegria student Jessi Seymour (pictured top competing at the Prix de Lausanne) was selected as one of just 20 finalists at the prestigious 2017 Prix de Lausanne. Alegria student Brayden Gallucci was also selected as a candidate in the competition but as he has just started training at the Royal Ballet School in London he did not compete. Brayden was a silver medal winner at the 2016 Genee International Ballet Competition.
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