Teen ready to take the leap

AUSTRALIAN dancer of the year Joshua Williams will draw the curtain on his beloved Southern Tasmanian Dance Eisteddfod this weekend, with the teenager’s heart set on a career interstate and overseas.

The 17-year-old is aiming for a dancing career in Sydney then the US, but right now is focused on his final eisteddfod before graduating from school.

Joshua, who was named the under-20 Australian dancer of the year at the Showcase Australian Dance Championships in January, has been dancing for 10 years and will next year move interstate — most likely to Sydney — to do a full-time dance course.

“I have always done this [eisteddfod] since I was little and it’s my last year, so I would like to finish off here,” the MacKillop College student said.

“I have been offered a scholarship in Queensland for Dance Force and I have been accepted into a few other schools in Sydney and Melbourne.”

Joshua, of Hobart, said he would then look for work in Sydney but said his ultimate goal was to jet off to the US for a career in commercial or contemporary dance.

“I’ve always been told I have the potential but you never know, you just hope for the best if you work for it.”

A record field of 2500 dancers continued to take crowds by storm during the eisteddfod at the Derwent Entertainment Centre yesterday. The event will wrap up on Saturday.