Sask. ballet teacher becomes 1st in Canada to pass top exam

A 20-year-old ballet teacher in Saskatchewan is the first person in Canada to pass one national organization's top dance exam and prove her moves are en pointe.

Brianna Dash completed the Advanced Solo Award

Ballet exam - the highest ballet level offered by the Canadian Dance Teachers' Association (CDTA) - in March.

The award was introduced five years ago, but Dash is the first in Canada to com‐ plete it, according to the CD‐ TA and Creative Kids, which provides support for young people to participate in the arts in Saskatchewan.

"I had no idea that no‐ body [in Canada] had taken [the exam] before, but then when I started working on it more, I found out nobody had," Dash told CBC's Saska‐ toon Morning on Wednesday.

"So I thought it was a huge opportunity for me, and I really pushed myself and it was a great honour."

Dash says she began preparing for the exam with her instructor of 17 years, Melissa Wallace, last fall, training three to four times per week at The Dance Studio of Swift Current, which Wallace owns.

Wallace had to choreo‐ graph and prepare several exercises for the exam, in‐ cluding a variation from Sleeping Beauty, all of which Dash performed entirely in pointe shoes on her tiptoes.

Dash said she did her best to stay present in the difficult exam - her last as a dancer.

"I was obviously very ner‐ vous, but it was such a nice happy feeling once I was in the room taking that exam," she said.

WATCH| This ballet teacher is the first in Cana‐ da to pass a top exam:

Finding out she had passed was a relief, she said, but it was even more mean‐ ingful to share with her own students at the studio soon after.

"They honestly couldn't believe it. They were so ex‐ cited for me. I remember showing them pictures from the day of, and they just kept having me go back and look through them all with them and explain everything be‐ hind it," said Dash.

Wallace says Dash's moti‐ vation, "fire to learn" and sense of joy set her apart as both a dancer and a teacher.

"The Advanced Solo Award exam requires incredi‐ ble stamina, attention to de‐ tail, strength, and above all, artistry and performance, which Brianna showcased within her exam," Wallace said in a March 12 news re‐ lease from Creative Kids, which is run by non-profit SaskCulture Inc.

Wallace says Dash's achievements have been supported by funding from Creative Kids, which helped Dash's family pay for extra lessons, exams and supplies.

Dash says she plans to continue working on her ballet teaching certifications in Swift Current and hopes her successful exam inspires other dancers in Canada to push themselves.

"I just truly love it because it teaches you so many life lessons and it's your pas‐ sion," she said. "You've got to keep going with it and I love to inspire younger students and work with them to achieve their own goals."