Ballet coach flexes forty-five years
Gillian Francis has taught ballet to thousands of Nelsonians through the Nelson Academy of Dance over 45 years. Photo: Gordon Preece.
Generations of Nelson ballet dancers have been shown first position by Gillian Francis.
After performing professionally on the national and international stage and a stint as Royal New Zealand Ballet principal, Gillian hung up her ballet shoes in favour of teaching the artform in Nelson in 1977.
She says the main highlight in her 45 years has been seeing her students at Nelson Academy of Dance twirl to mastering all the right moves.
“I really like seeing the improvement and the joy of the students, and I’ll push them a little bit harder than they think they should be pushed… but if you think something’s there, you want to get the best out of them,” she says.
“I think that’s a great sense of achievement for them and an achievement for the teacher.
“The enjoyment of the music the kids also like, and often you hear them walking out singing and humming the tunes which they’ve rehearsed, so they obviously like a lot of it.”
Gillian says she has taught thousands of children and young adults, including generations of families. She has taught four from one family who leaped from Nelson to the international stage.
“I’ve got two or three generations in the studio now, and one of the mothers, Mandy Robinson, was one of my pupils and she makes all the beautiful costumes, and her daughter Holly, she’s been in the studio for many years,” she says.
“I had two sisters who used to learn, and both their children used to come to me, and one of them had three girls who came to me, and they’ve all just finished dancing now, too.
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“Often you bump into them in town and I go, ‘oh, I remember your face but I’m really struggling with your name,” she quips.
Gillian says she had no plans to draw the curtains on her ballet teaching career, and hoped the public would be entertained by her 60 students taking part in her latest production of Peter and the Wolf, A Night in Vienna and Papillon.
“I hope they get enjoyment from the lovely music, lovely costumes, lovely dancing, lovely lighting, and scenery,” she says.
“Hopefully they get the whole package, and they go away happy.”
The show is on at the Theatre Royal on Friday 4 August at 7pm and Saturday 5 August at 1.30pm. Tickets are available here.