G'day everyone! Recently I went on a trip to Australia and I was excited about the potential of taking a dance class, while I was there. After hearing so much about the dancers and studios in Australia I couldn't wait to try it out. As I had limited time in Australia, I settled on taking a class in Sydney instead of Melbourne, as the Sydney Dance Company had classes right along the wharf near the Opera House. How could I turn that down?
After looking at my travel schedule and the studio's schedule, I found Mitchell Rayner's Ballet Level 2 class at 10:45am on Wednesdays. This was perfect as it was close to my hotel and early enough in the day that I could still have time to see the city. Since I only had a few days in Sydney, I only had time to take one class, but I was happy that I was able to fit it in to my schedule. The class was $30 for a drop-in class, but they have other alternatives and packages for those who have more time to take more classes or who live locally. I always like choosing an intermediate class whenever I travel abroad as I never know what to expect in terms of difficulty or skill level, as each city has been so different. Also, since I'm traveling I don't typically bring my pointe shoes and wouldn't have trained as much while on vacation.
I booked the class a few weeks before my trip to ensure I reserved my spot, which I recommend doing at least a few days prior, so that you know a spot will be available and it saves time for payment upon arrival. Finding the studio was fairly easy, but make sure to check you arrive at the correct address as there are two different ones, which they indicate in their reminder email. It's at: Wharf 4/5, 15 Hickson Road, Dawes Point, NSW 2000.
To make sure I could find the studio, I arrived 15min early to check-in at the front-desk and the receptionist was really friendly and helpful, and we were also able to find merch at the front. Also, as an FYI they do have changerooms, bathrooms, and showers for those who need it. However, I would advise wearing your dance wear to the studio to save time, as there are a lot of dancers in the building with many classes going on at once.
The class was 1.5 hours and it was in a very clean, spacious studio overlooking the wharf through the windows. They had cubby holes to put your bags in during class at the front of the room, which was very convenient. There were around 35+ students in the class I took, but there was plenty of room, as it was quite a large studio and there were lots of extra barres for the centre. I really enjoyed the class and I found the level comparable to an Intermediate class in Paris or London, so it was a really nice pace. We did en tournants, double/triple pirouettes, attitude turns, arabesque turns, temp leves in arabesque, adage, grand jetes, assembles, and more, as an example of the level of steps that were practiced. Students varied from professionals taking class to those who have danced growing up or those who took up dance later on in life but have started to learn progressively.
I appreciated how Mitchell Rayner gave corrections to the whole class and individual ones as well. As I have found in other large classes I have taken this aspect is sometimes missed, but I always like being able to learn and improve each class. There was also lots of time to stretch and do the exercise more than once, and I liked how he repeated the exercise enough during his explanation that I would remember it when it came time to put on the music. As I have found in other classes, they only show it once briefly with their hands and I forget parts of it by the time the music is on.
After the class was over I was able to find the change room and head to my next destination in Sydney- the Opera House! Overall, I had a great time at the class and I wish I had more time to take more classes during my time in Sydney. I hope you enjoyed this review and take a dance class at the Sydney Dance Company soon! See you soon, until next time!
Here is the link to the Sydney Dance Company's classes website: https://www.sydneydancecompany.com/classes/
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