Introducing Myself

Hello all!

My name is Ben and this shall be my very first blog post. It seems like quite a daunting idea as I sit here thinking about it. Despite my presence on social media I wouldn't consider myself one to share all that much about myself online so this experience feels very new and unusual to me. Having said that I can imagine that this will be very fun and a great way to communicate with my fellow coursemates.

Where to begin?

Well, I started dancing classical ballet at the age of 10. As a child I wanted to be an actor so my parents took me to after school classes that covered performing arts as a whole. After some time of singing, Tap/Jazz dancing and acting lessons, my teacher asked me if I wanted to take up Ballet classes. I had mixed feelings to begin with, especially with thoughts about whether I would be teased at school and having to deal with the stereotype that ballet was 'girly'. She managed to convince me though and after my first lesson I was hooked!

at London Children's Ballet rehearsal

Shortly after I was introduced to Irek Mukhamedov who was my first male dancer role model. Watching a video of him performing Spartacus was hugely inspirational and showed me that ballet wasn't all about sparkly tutus and prancing on one's toes like I had previously thought. I saw that ballet required you to be strong, powerful and highly athletic for both men and women.

I continued with my after school lessons and began taking classes in London on weekends at the Royal Ballet School as a Mid-Associate. Through that I got to appear on the Royal Opera House stage as a mouse in Ashton's 'Cinderella' and I got valuable performing experience dancing with London Children's Ballet in their productions of 'A Little Princess' and 'The Canterville Ghost'. After a while it became clear that if I were to pursue a professional career in dance, I would need to train at a vocational school.

I did a few auditions for schools and was offered a place at Elmhurst School for Dance in Birmingham. Leaving home to go to boarding school at 13 was quite scary but ultimately very exciting. I spent the next six years studying in Birmingham and got some fantastic opportunities in my later years to tour with Birmingham Royal Ballet around the UK but also America and Japan! I graduated Elmhurst in 2011.

'Raimonda' choreographed by Jelena Pankova

Since graduating I have had contracts with Teater Vanemuine in Estonia. It's a great company to work with as the repertoire is very diverse and I get to exercise the different styles of dance that I have trained in, unlike many other companies that may stick to mostly classical work. I have also been involved with a Tap side project with friends and colleagues where I get to combine dancing and playing guitar on stage. (Another love of mine.)

Aside from dancing I love to play music. My main instrument is guitar but I have been known to sing and play drums. I like to think that assists me with my coordination and musicality which is very handy as a dancer. I'm also an avid fan of video games but I do think that that side of me shall be taking more of a backseat as I embark on my BAPP course!

Whilst the thought of restarting academic studies is a little peculiar, I'm really looking forward to exploring who and where I am in my career and also connecting with my peers and coursemates during these next modules.

Here's to the journey ahead!