Katherine pirouettes to success
The Crawford College La Lucia matriculant impressed judges with her performance of the Lilac Fairy from Sleeping Beauty.
‘DANCE is what I am, not what I do’. It’s a simple phrase that best sums up Sunningdale’s ballet superstar Katherine Anderson. Since the age of six, the twinkle-toed ballet dancer has wowed coaches, audiences and international judges.
Katherine has now been chosen for a prestigious scholarship in Texas.
The Crawford College La Lucia matriculant impressed judges with her performance of the Lilac Fairy from Sleeping Beauty recently, at the Cecchetti International Classical Ballet in Richmond Virginia, which earned her a scholarship to the Joffery Ballet School.
“I’m really pleased and humbled by the opportunity. It’s a prestigious school and I think it will open doors in my ballet career and give me the experience I need to become a professional dancer,” she explained.
“I’m not sure what to expect but I’m currently focusing on finishing my matric year and doing well.”
Katherine has been juggling studying for her trial exams, currently on the go at the moment, and rehearsals and performing at this year’s Shall We Dance at The Playhouse Theatre.
“One thing I will say is ballet has taught me to manage my time effectively. I’ve been involved in Shall We Dance for the past six years and it has been awesome,” she said.
Katherine began training the Cecchetti ballet method at age six through the Minette de Klerk Dance Academy and was the recipient of the Mabel Ryan medal in 2009, and received top awards for all her Major Ballet Exams. She has been a member of the KZN Youth Ballet since 2010.
Her dance training includes modern, jazz, contemporary, tap, Spanish and Latin.
“I started ballet because of my friends. They were all doing it and I tried it out and just fell in love with the art. So I continued to chassé to class and my teacher held me back from competition in the early part of my career which helped set me up for the cut throat industry today.
“Failure is every ballet dancer’s worst nightmare. It’s taught me patience and hard work, and that striving for perfection could be a beautiful thing,” she said.
