Kate (17), a product of Toodyay Ballet School who now studies at the Victorian College of Arts Secondary School in Melbourne, was one of 25 dancers from Australia and NZ to be selected for the program.
The teenager studied dance with Lani McGeady in Toodyay until she was 14, then moved east to study at the Victorian College of Arts.
‘I’ve been dancing since I was three,’ Kate said.
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READ NOW‘I was blown away when I found out I had made it into the program. I was so happy.’
The 12-month dance program, being offered for the first time in 2014, will provide a training experience for students to learn about professional dance careers.
Places on the nationally accredited course were hotly contested, with more than 220 dancers applying from all corners of the country.
Kate said that although the industry had a reputation for being competitive, she just tried to stay positive.
‘I try to stay focused and positive,’ she said.
‘I would love to go to the Dresden Opera Ballet in the future.
‘Sometimes I miss the quiet countryside in Toodyay but I love living in the city.’
Kate will start full-time studies at Sydney Dance Company’s harbourside studios in February.