After a thrilling summer at a ballet school in New York, 12-year-old Thomas la Grange, of Kommetjie, has returned home.
With help from a BackaBuddy campaign, Thomas attended a five-week programme at the American Academy of Ballet Summer School at Adelphi University in Garden City, New York, from June 30 to August 3 (“New York beckons for 12-year-old ballet star,” Echo November 2023).
“The experience was fantastic. I arrived early and got to help with costumes, and the director even gave me a complimentary ticket to see a ballet at the American Ballet Theatre,” said Thomas.
“We started with two weeks of ballet, then moved on to contemporary and Spanish dance. Each week, we had to learn and perform a complete show for an audience, which was both exciting and stressful.
“We didn’t have a show in the fourth week because we needed the final two weeks to prepare for the big gala at the end of the programme.
“The opportunity to train with Iain MacDonald, one of my favourite ballet instructors, and Master Gilber Mayer from Paris was incredible,” Thomas said. “I learned so much from each of them and saw an improvement in my technique.”
He also enjoyed making new friends and dancing with young dancers from around the world.
“It was really cool because everyone was from a different country. I learned a lot from each of them and their unique dance styles.”
Thomas is preparing for his next show with Cape Junior Ballet and an upcoming ballet exam.
His mother, Collette la Grange, said: “Sending him off alone was stressful, but seeing him manage everything so well was rewarding. His dedication is unmatched. We’re even looking into setting up a home dance studio for him.”
