The New Zealand School of Dance was established in 1967 and is a tertiary educational institute in New Zealand that teaches contemporary dance and ballet. It started as the National School of Ballet, and after contemporary dance was added in 1982 the name was changed to the New Zealand School of Dance.[1]
About
The school has two qualifications, a two year diploma or a three diploma with a classical or contemporary dance stream, and prepares students for careers as professional dancers. The New Zealand School of Dance is housed in Te Whaea: The National Centre for Dance and Drama in Wellington, New Zealand.[2]
History
The director of the school when it was first set up was Sarah Neil with nine full-time and four part-time students in 1967.[3] The school was funded by the Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council and formed in with the New Zealand Ballet Trust Board.[4] For the first 15 years it was called the National School of Ballet. Other directors include Russell Kerr (1967 - 1968), Dorothy Daniels (1969 - 1971), Philip Chatfield (1972 - 1975), and Rowena Jackson (1975 - 1978).[5] The current director is Garry Trinder appointed in 1998 and his first role was to oversee the move into the current premises at Te Whaea.[6]
Graduates
Graduates of the school have been in the following companies:
Graduates Katherine Skelton (née Grange) is a soloist with the Royal New Zealand Ballet in 2021 and Paul Mathews is a principle. He has been with the company since 2006.[16]
^Revfeim, Turid (2017). New Zealand School of Dance : 50 years, 1967-2017. Stephen A'Court, New Zealand School of Dance. Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand. ISBN978-0-473-38357-2. OCLC975997145.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)