THE stage at the Little Theatre in St Andrew comes alive this weekend with the staging of Sleeping Beauty and other works by the Vickers Dance Studio.

Head of the studio, Elizabeth, Vickers-Samuda, notes that recitals are very difficult to pull together due to the limited rehearsal hours available to her students. Nevertheless, she has put together what she deems an interesting show set for tomorrow, November 28, and Sunday, November 29.

“The thing with recitals is that students get very excited and it also helps them with their certification from the Royal Academy of Dance Ballet, which is internationally recognised.”

In addition to Sleeping Beauty, this year’s show — which will be performed by a cast of 220 students — features a classical ballet piece by Balanchine;

a Christmas-themed presentation; modern dance pieces choreographed by Marlon Simms and Paul Newman of the National Dance Theatre Company and an excerpt from Paquita.

Vickers-Samuda maintains that classical ballet training is of critical importance for any dancer and therefore the art form will always remain ‘in vogue’ for dancers due to its emphasis on technique and form.

“So many modern dancers still come to me for classes to sharpen their skills. Ballet forms the bottom line and is the basis for a lot of the popular stuff,” she said.