Wednesday January 19, 2005

Professional ballet dancers in Tapestry of the Heart

BALLET classes are often a must for all young girls and sometimes a couple of boys. The number of ballet schools in existence is surely proof of the massive number of children who undertake the rigorous training of ballet. But how many of these actually move on to become performers? Whether it is because of a lack of opportunities or the desire to stick to conventional professions, the fact remains not many embark on a professional career in dance.

Well, after seven years of cultivating young talent, acclaimed ballerina Ellie Lai, principal of the Ellie Zhou Ballet Studio, has decided that the time is right for her to launch the careers of her dancers as professionals. With her husband Zhou Gui Xin, Lai has launched the Ellie Zhou Professional Arts (EZPA). The group will comprise dancers who Lai has taken under her wing.

“We are now ready to launch the EZPA group who comprise an all-Malaysian team of the country’s top ballet dancers,” says Ellie. “We have managed to create a unique platform for EZPA as the pool of talent that we have on board is proficient both in western classical ballet as well as eastern oriental dances.”

The EZPA group may well be the only local dance company that is able to perform both dance styles. According to the group’s studio manager Jarren Lai, EZPA began with a number of objectives. The first is to raise the standard of performing arts locally. And as it is in a unique position of being the only company to do both ballet and Chinese dances, the group has the long-term objective of hoping to work closely with various government bodies to promote performing arts in the country.

“We believe we have what it takes,” says Jarren.

The 15-member group boasts some of the country’s top ballet dancers. Most of them have clinched the Solo Competition organised by the Malaysian Dance Society. Among the dancers are Annie Liew and Foo Siau Yin, who were both runners-up in the regional Asia Pacific Dance competition held in Singapore last year. Also included is Elynn Chew who has performed with the Albany Berkshire Ballet in the United States and Alyzsa Lim, winner of the 1999 Soo Kuo Hsiang competition, who has choreographed items for national dance festivals like Tari 2002.

All the dancers have undergone the professional dancer course offered by the Ellie Zhou Ballet Studio, which means that they are trained to be a cut above the rest. Ellie is the only Malaysian to have completed the Professional Course taught by the London’s prestigious Royal Ballet School with distinction. She has danced with Germany’s Bielefeld Dance Company and was a founding member of the Singapore Dance Theatre.

“Ellie went to Royal Ballet which is like the Harvard of this industry, she brings back all that experience and trains her students here,” explains Jarren. “The professional dancer course gives them a chance to become professional dancers and not end up simply as dance teachers. After the course, our dancers consist of some of the best and we believe that we can represent the country.”

It was in Singapore that Ellie met her husband Zhou, often sharing the stage in numerous productions. Zhou, who at only 12 was selected to join the Qingdao City Song and Dance Troupe, is a graduate of the School of Performing Arts and the Central National School of Beijing Arts. He also became the youngest member of the Central National School of Beijing Arts corp de ballet, joining at the age of 17. Locally, Zhou is now the artistic director of Ellie Zhou Ballet and also teaches at Akademi Seni Kebangsaan (ASK).

It is because of this unique combination that the dancers of Ellie Zhou Ballet have been able to pick up both Western and Eastern dance forms. For its debut performance, EZPA will present a combination of items comprising neo-classical, contemporary and eastern dances, which will showcase the group’s expertise in a show billed Tapestry of the Heart.

This show will feature two classical ballet performances and oriental dances from the region of XinJiang, Han and Mongolia. – By Rubin Khoo

Tapestry of the Heartt takes place on Jan 22 and Jan 23 at the Securities Commission, KL. There is a buffet dinner at 6.30pm. Show time is 8pm. Tickets are via donations at 03-78045600.

eCentral

Professional ballet dancers in Tapestry of the Heart

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