Former ESB/Vimy Dancer featured in the Dance Current magazine

Sierra Lacombe danced with ESB and Vimy dance throughout her childhood.  She was hard working, committed, fun and an overall fantastic student, both in dance and academically - she graduated from Vimy as our Valedictorian in 2010 and went off to explore the world as an adult. 

She and her family were a big part of our ESB family. Sierra and her brother Nathan both danced with the school.  Many of you have met her mother Catherine who works in our office and has performed with our adult groups for many years.  And her father Ernie helped out with sets, costumes, and even on stage countless times over the years.

Sierra had left dance for a while and explored other options and studies, but it turns out that dance still calls to her.  What a wonderful surprise to find this article!  Congratulations Sierra!  Your ESB/Vimy family are proud of you!

http://www.thedancecurrent.com/column/cruise-ship-dancing-edmonton-s-sierra-lacombe

On the Ground

Cruise Ship Dancing with Edmonton’s Sierra Lacombe

Growing up in Edmonton taking ballet, jazz, modern and tap classes at the Edmonton School of Ballet, I could have never imagined that my professional dance journey would lead me halfway across the world, performing while sailing in the middle of the ocean. But that’s what I’m doing, and I am thrilled to able to travel, call a professional stage my home and meet so many incredible people from different walks of life.
Three months ago I was hired as a production cast dancer for Royal Caribbean Productions aboard the Quantum of the Seas, the second largest ship in the Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines (RCCL) fleet of twenty-six. Working for RCCL is truly a dream job. 

Click here to read more . . .

Preventing Injuries

Miss Esther, one of our ESB tap teachers, thought that you might be interested in the following article regarding the prevention of dance injuries.  As we head into our summer and off to summer dance, the advice here is valuable to a dancer's health and positive experience. 

Read the full article at the 'Stop Sports Injuries' website.  You can also download a .pdf of the article here:  http://www.stopsportsinjuries.org/STOP/Prevent_Injuries/Dance_Injury_Prevention.aspx

Pilates at ESB Summer Dance!!

We wanted to you to let you know about a wonderful opportunity. Our Summer Dance Intensive 2016 will run from August 2-13th.   This year we are offering Pilates for Dancers. This class is taught by Kate Stashko. Kate is a professional dancer, choreographer, teacher, writer and part-time Pilates instructor. She received her full Matwork certification through the STOTT PILATES® International Training Centre in Toronto in 2008 and has been teaching ever since. As Kate comes from the dance world, she has a great working knowledge of how a dancer’s body works and how Pilates can help.

Check out the Summer Dance schedule.  Week 1, your classes will be Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from 5:15-6:15 and Week 2 will be Monday, Wednesday and Friday 5:15-6:15. The cost of the classes is $120.

We hope you will take the time to review the information provided and let us know if you wish to register.  Please contact us if you have any questions or you wish to register!

We look forwards to hearing from you!

New Experiences for our Dancers

Congratulations again to Laurie Alston for her opportunity to choreograph and perform in a commercial for the Alberta Physiotherapy Association.  If you haven't had the chance to see this video, here is the link - https://youtu.be/MAB8mm2JyY4.

One of the exciting follow-ups from this commercial was that Laurie was chosen to be highlighted in a second commercial the follows Laurie's life as a mom and a teacher.  Congratulations Laurie!  This meant that Laurie had the opportunity to choose some dancers to be in the video with her!  Several of our dancers had that chance.  Here is the link so that you can see another great video featuring Vimy/ESB teachers and dancers! https://youtu.be/ckEIpjHMAIA


Here is what some of the dancers had to say about the experience!  

"Bella and I were the first ones to get there and we were sent to little dressing room where we put our stuff. After everyone else got there we went into the studio studio we would be filming in and warmed up and met everyone. We had to set a little routine we would always do over and over until they got all the right angles they wanted. We shot the same thing over and over for at least half an hour and it got really tiring. In the end only a few seconds of what we did actually ended up being used. When we were done we went into one of the smaller studios and talked with the other girls in our group. They called us back to take a picture. Everything had to be very precise and our spots were constantly switched. The picture took around 30 minutes to take one they were happy with and I never did see it. Watching the commercial was super exciting because I have never done anything like this and I never thought I would be picked to do anything like this."

~ Isabel Bento

"This year I was invited to be in a commercial for The Alberta Physiotherapists Association. It was a really interesting experience. It was good to get the knowledge/experience of what it’s like to dance in things like commercials or on tv. The amount of filming that goes into a 3 minute commercial surprised me. It”s a lot more than just 3 minutes worth of filming, that's for sure! I enjoyed working with the whole tech and camera crew along with all of the other dancers. They made it a very welcoming and fun environment, which was nice considering it was a whole new experience for me. Filming this commercial made me think about wanting to do more things like this in the future."
~ Grace Antoniw

"I felt inspired by the experience of taking part in the creation of this commercial. It was monumental in my development as a dancer and a person. I was presented with a variety of new experiences, which allowed for growth. Experiences like these really allow you to see what a career in dance would look like. It allows for your training to flourish as you find motivation and create a mentality of professionalism.  During this experience we were introduced to the film industry and how they work to create commercials and videos. They pay a tremendous amount of attention to details. They have a vision to create images that the audience will respond to. In this case showing the talent of the physiotherapists in Alberta. I am very grateful for the opportunity to be involved in the making of this commercial."

~ Jillian Engen

"Having had the opportunity to participate in the making of a commercial was an enormously invaluable experience, one that I will carry with me for the rest of my life. Although going to a new place and meeting people that I had never met before was a bit daunting, the experience of quickly learning the choreography and constantly having to make changes to what I was doing to ensure that our movement suited the vision of the director was very exciting. It taught me how different dancing for a camera is compared to dancing on a stage. With a performance in a theater every movement one does and expression one makes has to be very exaggerated so that the audience can understand the story, however dancing for film requires much more attention to details and nuances since every small movement and smile is captured. Ms. Laurie is such an inspirational teacher and not only helps us grow as dancers but as young men and women, so being able to watch her in her niche was incredibly uplifting. The experience pushed me out of my comfort zone and gave me insight into what the professional world of dance is like. I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity, which allowed me to grow immensely, and will now be added to the long list of experiences that I have had while at Vimy dance that have all prepared me for a professional career in dance."

~ Charlotte Battigelli

"Participating in the “Born to Move” commercial for Physiotherapy Alberta was both an exciting and educational experience. In working with Laurie Alston and fellow students, I gained invaluable insight into the world of professional dance, and gained an understanding of how  different art forms come can come together to produce works of unimaginable talent and creativity. It was so very inspiring to see Ms. Laurie and her colleagues at work, doing what they have dedicated their lives to, and sharing with others their endless love and passion for their areas of expertise. Although I was first hesitant to take on this challenge, in working with so many new faces and quickly learning new choreography, I learned the importance of detailed instruction and the subtleties of movement in directing such a film. I know this is an experience I will take with me for the rest of my life, and I hope to eventually share such dedication with the youth of my generation. I am so thankful to have participated in such a memorable and humbling opportunity, and am blessed to have worked with such capable and gifted individuals. The connections I made in shooting this video were endless, and have helped me to grow exceptionally as a dancer. I look forward to the many exciting opportunities that a future in dance may present for me, as I move into my final year in the Vimy Dance program"

~ Josh Hidson