“Dance with your heart and your body will follow” are the words that the pupils of L’Academie de Danse hold dear in their hearts.
Lead by instructor Ashleigh Otto, the academy teaches young pupils the art of dancing.
From ballet and tap to contemporary and modern dance, Ashleigh gets her pupils ready to excel in national competitions and festivals.
She started dancing at the age of five, influenced by her mother Glenda Stebbing who was a dance instructor.
“It’s been something I’ve loved from an early age. My family has always supported me because dance is good for the mind and body,” she said.
Ashleigh not only learned dance from her mother, she was also under the tutelage of Genevieve Madden.
She then went on to perform on different stages and festivals around Roodepoort, making a name for herself.
She then returned to take over the dance academy from Genevieve and has not looked back since.
To Ashleigh, all the different styles are her favourites, but ballet and modern dance stand out most.
“They’re so different. In ballet, you learn discipline, strength and line, while modern dance has so many different categories of dance under one umbrella. Contemporary and jazz dancing are more dynamic,” she said.
Now that she has become an instructor, Ashleigh has a developed a different view of dancing and wants to inspire her pupils to greater heights.
“There is a difference between being a dancer and being a teacher. As a teacher, you see the growth and improvement of your pupil. It becomes more about the pupil than the teacher. You realise that as a teacher, you have to inspire love and passion for dancing in them. Every pupil has a different personality and that is where I lean on my experience to handle a situation,” she said.
Ashleigh prepares her pupils for festivals and exams. Currently, her pupils are focusing on the upcoming Solo Performers event of the Association of International Dance Teachers (AIDT). Pupils are required to learn five different dances for the exam.
Ashleigh’s proudest moment as an instructor came last year when her pupils all excelled at last year’s AIDT’s Solo Performers event.
Chelsea Roebeck has been dancing since she was five years old, and now at 18 years of age, her love for dance has grown.
“At that age I saw a dance studio and it looked interesting to me. My parents were more than happy to sign me up. However, after I started I didn’t want to continue but my mom always said to finish what we’d started. So then I continued and my love and passion for dancing just grew,” said Chelsea.
She added that her favourite style of dance is ballet as it is more graceful and elegant, which suits her best.
“I don’t enjoy being on the floor very much so ballet is my favourite,” she said.
For more information on the academy, contact Ashleigh on 076 748 9769 or at ashstebbing@gmail.com
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