It's hard to believe, but it is now 80 years since the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) was established in Australia. To celebrate this milestone, the Academy is holding a series of anniversary galas throughout the year, beginning with the combined Victoria/Tasmania Gala at the National Theatre in St Kilda, Melbourne, on Sunday March 29.
The evening opened with a short speech from the artistic director of the Australian Ballet and Vice President of the RAD, David McAllister, who spoke of the importance of ballet syllabus organisations as the “backbone” of dance in Australia. Himself a past student of RAD teacher Evelyn Hodgkinson, he revealed he still remembers the "Soldier's Dance" he learnt in Grade 1.
Such memories were in abundance both among the audience and on stage. The program consisted of a presentation of of selected dances from the RAD syllabus from 1964, as well as a variety of pieces, separately choreographed, demonstrating pure classical, folkloric and neo-classical dance, and all presented meticulously and professionally. They were performed by students from schools from across 31 schools. In addition, the 2014 Audrey Nicholls, Kathleen Gorham and Joan Burnett award winners presented a solo each. Special guest artists from the Australian Ballet School, Aya Watanabe and Edward Smith, performed the "Grand Pas Classique" by Victor Gsovsky. Another highlight was an excerpt from Jonathan Taylor's Opus 47. All the participants took part in a final Defile, choreographed by Brian Nolan, the Chairman of the RAD Vic/Tas Regional Advisory Panel and host for the evening.
Many dance luminaries and respected teachers were in the audience, including the late Gailene Stock's mother, Sylvia, who was one of the original organisers, Patron Audrey Nicholls and examiner and RAD Fellow, Martin Rubinstein.
At the end of the evening, Luke Rittner, the Chief Executive of the RAD, announced (via video) that the next Genee International Ballet Competition will be held in Sydney in 2016 – in December at the Sydney Opera House.
Photo by JON CLIFTON