Ailish and Iana sparkle in Nutcracker!

Young CSBS dancers Ailish and Iana had the amazing experience of touring with Scottish Ballet in "The Nutcracker"!

The girls were part of the children's cast in a revival of the Peter Darrell production which involves children as central to the storyline. Iana was cast as one of the party children and became a mouse in the dream scene, while Ailish took on the demanding role of Clara, the lead role in the story! The girls joined the professional company on tour and performed to festive sell out audiences in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Newcastle from December-February in 20 performances each!

Talented dancers...

The children's cast were selected from hundreds of hopefuls at auditions and our girls joined a small group of 30 young dancers who had a demanding rehearsal schedule in preparation for their experience. 

Iana (12) currently studies Grade 4 Ballet and is a student on both our Majors Programme and our competitive dance team, Starshine Elite. She is also a Scottish Ballet Associate and Ballet West Associate, as well as attending the Royal Conservatoire. Iana represented Scotland in the Dance World Cup in 2017 and will be competing again this year!

Ailish (12) is also in Grade 4 and studies ballet, jazz, tap and musical theatre. She is a Scottish Ballet Associate and member of our Majors programme. Ailish was awarded the 'Spirit of Dance Award' at our 2017 Choreography Competition, and also received the 2016 overall progress trophy. She also won the 2017 RAD Senior Awards Day for Inter Foundation level! Ailish was interviewed for STV news about the role and you can watch below: 

You can also read a short news item in the Falkirk Herald.

Well done girls - we loved watching you both perform and look forward to following your dance careers!