Coronavirus: Young dancers take classes online after dazzling showcase

Around 600 ballerinas from Starz Ballet performed across six sell-out shows in two days on March 14 and 15 to show off what they had learned from their dance teachers.

Normally taking place at Ferneham Hall, the performers put on their shows at the smaller Berry Theatre in Hedge End, as the Fareham venue recently closed its doors for two years to undertake refurbishments.

With organisers taking steps to keep the area clean and hygienic, months of training meant the dancers could put on six 45-minute performances which impressed audiences.

Cheryl Dodd, one of the owners of Starz Ballet, said: ‘We fully expected to and planned to cancel our dance show, but when Boris Johnson announced public gatherings could continue, we went ahead with the show.

‘They had all been working towards the shows for so long. It was very pre-planned and very well organised - it paid off because every single show ran like clockwork. It was brilliant.’

She added: ‘The kids all seemed to really enjoy it. We have had amazing feedback from the parents. The whole ethos of our show is that it’s nurturing and there’s no pressure on them to perform.’

In a bid to keep the students dancing at home following stricter advice from government over coronavirus, the school has started running online classes which started today , with classes set to run six days a week.

Cheryl, who set up Starz Ballet 10 years ago, said: ‘Our team probably hasn't had a day off. They have worked relentlessly to get all these videos done, we have worked really hard to pull this together and we have managed to do it within a week. It’s a huge amount of work.

‘We have launched these classes and they’re going really well. The whole concept of offering our services online is really exciting. We will keep the children dancing at home, we just need to take it a day at a time.’