Meet The Principal

Melissa’s love of dance began at a young age, training under Lynette Gay of the Queensland Ballet Company and Phillip Gould from Young Talent Time. She later attended The McDonald College in Sydney, where she immersed herself in Classical Ballet, Modern/Contemporary, Jazz, Character, Pointe, Pas de Deux, Repertoire, Spanish Dance, Anatomy and Dance History.

 

Melissa continued into full-time ballet training at The McDonald College and performed with The Premier State Ballet Company. After completing her RAD Vocational Examinations to Advanced 1, she travelled to Europe and was accepted into the highly regarded Académie de Danse Princesse Grace in Monaco. There she trained with world-renowned teacher Marika Besobrasova in a syllabus inspired by the Russian Vaganova method.

 

Upon returning to Australia Melissa danced with The National Theatre Ballet, in Melbourne, under the direction of Gailene Stock from the Royal Ballet School & Australian Ballet Company.

 

 Melissa began her teaching career in 1990 & commenced  her formal teacher training with the Royal Academy of Dance, receiving her RAD Teaching Certificate & becoming a qualified, registered teacher with the RAD in 1996. 

 

Over the past 30 years, Melissa has taught at many respected studios across the Blue Mountains, Penrith, Wollongong and Sydney, including Alegria under the direction of Hilary Kaplan and Archibald Mackenzie.

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In mid 2014, Melissa opened Gerringong Ballet & Dance with the vision of creating a warm, inclusive and community-focused studio. Today, she is proud to provide high-quality dance training that supports each child’s confidence, growth and love of dance.

 

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