Dancers dedicated to professional roles
A group of young dancers have gone to great lengths to pursue their dream careers.
Maddie McCarthy dropped out of school in favour of home schooling, Aria Ferris prepared a CV and audition, and Olivia CarrManoit moved cities.
The 12-year-olds are three of the 14 girls cast as ballet dancers in the upcoming production of Billy Elliot the Musical.
Maddie is home schooled and says she spends a lot of her time during the day practising.
‘‘I really like musical theatre. ‘‘That’s what I want to do when I’m older and that’s why my mum pulled me out of school,’’ Maddie says.
‘‘You can express yourself in so many characters.’’
This is her first professional show and she says she enjoys telling her parents she’s going to work each day.
Olivia and her family moved from Tauranga to Auckland, specifically so she could star in the musical.
She left behind the six sports she plays and a spot as deputy head girl at her school. She found out about the auditions the day they were on.
The now Albany Junior High School student watched Billy Elliot the Musical in London in 2012.
‘‘I didn’t think three years later I’d be doing the same show,’’ she says.
‘‘I’m passionate about all three [dancing, singing and acting] and just putting them all together and performing on stage.’’
Aria has already been in other professional shows such as the Sound of Music in 2014.
‘‘My mum swears I could sing before I could talk,’’ Aria says.
‘‘I wanted to be in Billy Elliot because it’s another opportunity to be in a show and meet cool new people.’’
She is excited to be in the show and be the first to perform at the new ASB Waterfront Theatre.
‘‘We get to say we were the first people to ever appear on that stage.’’
Set in 1984, Billy Elliot the Musical is the story of an 11-yearold boy who prefers ballet to boxing. Three actors alternate playing the lead and there are also two dancing casts.
The show opens on October 7 at the ASB Waterfront Theatre and runs till November 6. For more see asbbillyelliot.co.nz.