Having 60 young dance students perform at two Queenstown end-of-year shows last Sunday was pretty special for all concerned.
And extra-special for 19-year-old dance school owner/teacher Brooklyn McLeod, who only start ed Dance QT at the start of the year and, to her total surprise, seen it flourish.
Invercargill-raised McLeod learnt to dance from the age of 3, then continued when her family moved to Queenstown when she was about 12 — former top-notch Russian ballerina Anna Gorobets, she says, was a particularly influential teacher.
While in Year 12, at Wakatipu High, she started on her 3-year teaching qualification — then decided to start her dance school at the start of this year by booking class times at the Te Atamira arts and cultural centre.
‘‘I didn’t know if anyone was going to turn up, it could have been zero, then I had 12, like, in one week — I was like, ‘oh my god’, and then more came.’’
Her students have ranged from 2 to 17, with a fair percentage being totally new to dancing.
McLeod’s mainly taught hip hop in group lessons — the kids love that style on TikTok, she says.
‘‘There’s some very good ones,’’ she adds.
‘‘I still dance myself, I wish I did more but this is taking over.’’
Her two end-of-year shows were so well attended by parents and other supporters she could have almost had a third show, she says.
Next year McLeod’s planning to offer daily classes across a wider range of styles including jazz, modern, lyrical and contemporary.
She’ll also consider one-on-one teaching for competition students who’ve been dancing for a few years.
Te Atamira director Olivia Egerton, whose 4-year-old Henry’s one of her students, calls McLeod ‘‘a phenomenal inspiration’’.
‘‘She’s a quiet achiever but goes around so calmly and the kids just get so much from her — to get all the tiny ones up there [on the
stage] is really amazing.’’
Egerton says her son’s ‘‘a real hurricane child, so to be able to get him to focus and dance, she’s got magic’’.
‘‘Every Thursday after dance [class] we get a show.’’
