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Q: When did you first become involved with the National Dance Foundation of Bermuda?

A: I have been on the board since 1988, I believe. I was on the board of the Bermuda Ballet Association at the same time. I've tried to involve myself as much as possible with dance on the island as a volunteer having had a professional career of my own.

As a teacher and as a dancer, I know what you gain from a (dance) career. Whether or not you go on and do it professionally, the character traits you develop ? the focus ? are just tremendous. And so I felt very strongly about this programme, a professional programme that would help talented youth on the island to take that next step.

Q: You mentioned a professional career. With which company?

A: I danced with Houston Ballet and then I went into development work. And then when I had my own kids, because I wanted to be able to stay at home with them, I went into teaching because I could do that in the evenings. I'd stay with the kids during the day and then my husband would come home and I'd go off and teach. Once we moved here, I started teaching (at the Bermuda High School for Girls). Both our daughters went to the school so it worked out very well. Officially, I started in January. I had been doing development work as a board member up to that point and then in January I took on the position on a trial basis for six months. Fortunately for me, and I also think fortunately for the Foundation, once the six months were up they decided the position should be made permanent. I couldn't find a better job for myself right now. The physical is certainly a body awareness, self-assuredness hopefully, in your carriage. The character-building traits would be focus, discipline, commitment and responsibility. (The NDF programmes) take a child who then commits to at least a five-day schedule a week, of dance.

That's not just one class a day. They're taking two, three classes a day, starting at 10 in the morning and finishing at six in the evening.

Q: Do you think there's a greater need for programmes like this?

A: In dance you have to start pretty early. As far as disciplinary study, about seven years old is a good age. I think this is youth development at its best. We're capturing kids at an early age. Kids that are older and have that passion, we're keeping them going. I think they really are the future of Bermuda dancers ? they're getting the foundation laid early, and it's correct. There are nearly 3,000 students of dance in Bermuda ? that's five per cent of our population, ten per cent of the student body in Bermuda. That's an awful lot of kids. From the research that we've done, we think ten to 15 per cent of those kids could really excel in dance. Not every child grows up to be an accountant or goes into reinsurance or becomes an architect.

I think Bermuda has an awful lot of artistic kids and it's nice for them to have that outlet at this level. What the local schools are doing is wonderful. They're getting the enthusiasm going with the kids and they are teaching them well.

But what we're able to do is supplement that with really world-class training from overseas. Not only are the kids here getting that training but we offer teacher-training to (instructors) in the local schools for free.

The American Ballet Association (ABT) does four master classes a year for free, for all the kids. Dance Bermuda is our only fee-paying programme and it's heavily subsidised by corporate Bermuda and Government.

So the kids and the schools are getting the benefit of all the training, and also, ABT is starting to see the island differently. They really feel as if they're involved in changing what's happening here, in giving the kids a chance. They see the talent, they see the potential and they're getting as excited about nurturing that as we are.

Q: How do dancers become involved with the NDF? Do they have to audition?

A: Yes, they audition in March. The kids in the Young Dancers' Programme were placed through that audition. The kids in the Intensive Programme auditioned then as well, but had to audition again on the first day of the programme to determine what level of class they would be in.

It isn't just a matter of being good enough to get into the programme, we need to know where are you right now so that we place you in the right level.

Q: How many are kids involved?

A: Ninety-five. We have 15 males. Four are Bermudian, which is great. Last year we had 11 males and only two Bermudians so we've had a 100 per cent increase.

There is a stigma attached to boys and dance but many of the boys say they went through a period of being teased and then said, 'Well, you know what? This is what I really like to do. I enjoy this.'

And that's what it's about ? doing what drives you to excel. I took a couple of them on Peter Lewis' (radio) show on Mix 106 and they were great.

Q: And you recommend it as a good programme for those kids considering a professional career in dance?

A: Yes. We're not only trying to produce professional dancers. That's really not the goal. We would like everybody to get the most expert training that they can get so that they reach their potential, whatever that may be. If it's professional, that's wonderful but that's not the end goal.

Like I said, the character traits that they develop will stay with them for a lifetime. It doesn't matter whether they go into dance or not. You find a lot of business people who have had dance or music careers.

Dancers are bright. They know how to commit themselves, they really know how to push and challenge themselves. Isn't that what we all want for our children, that they find something they love and they know how to work for that?

Q: How many programmes are run through the National Dance Foundation?

A: We have Dance Bermuda, our international three-week summer dance intensive. We audition in Canada, New York and Bermuda and bring about a quarter of the students from overseas so they can have that international experience here.

Then we have the Master Class teacher-training series which is sponsored by PartnerRe and, three times a year, ABT staff come down and offer free teacher-training for the local teachers ? simultaneously, they'll have master classes in ballet, jazz, modern.

And then there are the scholarships, something that really got a boost this year. This year we gave $20,000 in financial aid to Dance Bermuda, we received $20,000 from the (Community Affairs) Ministry for merit scholarships for Dance Bermuda, another $10,000 from (Oscar-winning actress) Catherine Zeta-Jones for students returning to Dance Bermuda and then we just announced the Bermuda Ballet Association commemorative awards.

Q: The Bermuda Ballet Association?

A: The Ballet Association voted last November to dissolve, so they are no longer. They used to provide some scholarship money for overseas study and (aside from that) the Arts Council was really the only group to support dance overseas.

We thought it was important for that to continue. We grew the Patricia Calnan Scholarship so that it's now $15,000, the largest award ever given prior was $3,400, then we named two new ones. One award of $7,500 in honour of Madame Ana Roje, the inspiration behind the Ballet Association, and a second of $7,500 honouring John Profit, who was the founding secretary treasurer.

And then we give $5,000 in bursaries so that we can continue to support local interests such as the Civic Ballet or a child studying in a local school.

Q: Is the Patricia Calnan Scholarship the largest offered for an arts student on island?

A: It's the largest one designated for dance.

To help raise the standard of dance excellence on the island and to promote positive youth development, in a nutshell. From the age of about two, I was dancing all around the house. My mother waited until I was seven and then put me in a dance class. I danced in Baltimore, Maryland until I was 12 or 13. My teacher would take me away to summer programmes and then I went to a ballet academic high school in Washington, DC.

I graduated from there after three years, got a contract and wanted to dance. My parents told me no. They said I wasn't old enough to sign a lease, that I had to go to college.

Off I went to Indiana University but they said if I didn't like it and was miserable after a semester, we could talk again. After a week I was having such a great time having a social life I said, 'No. This is good.' The ballet department there was excellent.

Q: Did you continue dancing after graduation?

A: I started dancing professionally with the Maryland Ballet for a year, almost two years and then I ended up in Caracas, Venezuela with an international touring company. We were maybe in Caracas about five months of the year and we toured the rest of the time ? through Europe, South America and the States.

And then I got injured. Thank goodness I had that college education. I finished my master's degree at Indiana in ballet and health and taught at Duke University for a year and then moved with my husband, Terry, to Houston.

Q: Was he a dancer?

A: He was a diving coach. In fact, he's the diving coach for Katura Horton Perinchief. We moved to Houston for his coaching. Houston Ballet was directed at the time by one of my teachers from high school, Ben Stevenson, a world-renowned choreographer and master teacher.

Someone got injured and they said, 'We could use you right now'. I said, 'I'm so out of shape'. They said, 'We'll get you in shape'.

I was married. I thought, 'Forget it. I can't go back'. But my husband, being the wonderful man he is, said, 'No. You have to do this. You're not finished'.

So off I went. I danced and toured with them for three years, which was wonderful because I'd retired before I was ready. In the last year I danced we toured 21 weeks.

Q: You mentioned Venezuela. Do you speak Spanish?

A: I did. When we arrived they spoke English to us as we got off the plane and then they took us to the apartment and said that from then on they would only speak Spanish because it was the kindest thing they could do to help us to learn.

And they were right ? our classes were conducted completely in Spanish. (Ballet) terminology is French, but all our corrections were given in Spanish.

Q: Are you still fluent?

A: I'm sure if I was around it I'd pick it back up, but I was only with that company for one year. I have three children. My eldest, Rebecca, is pretty well known. Her passion is musical theatre and she's off to the Royal Scottish Academy in Glasgow to study in September. She just graduated from Indiana University ? exactly where my husband and I went ? with a double degree, in English and musical theatre. She's 21.

Our son, Evan, is 20. He's very musical but because of his sister decided he would leave it alone. He only took one year of violin and he (studied) the piano when he was itty bitty, but he'll pick up a guitar and just play. He'll sit down at the piano and play. He has a lot of talent. It's his second year as one of the Pop 'n' Sizzle ambassadors and he's fabulous ? he's such a people person.

Our youngest, Sophie, is 13 and is in the dance programme here. There's a break in age because, between Evan and Sophie, we were living in Bermuda but I was the dance coach for the United States gymnastics team ? the women's national team, the team that won the gold medal, the only team that could dance in my opinion.

I did that for six years. The team was getting ready to go the Olympics. She was born in '93. They went in '94 and they won and it was great after six years of training.

Q: Olympic gymnasts require dance coaches?

A: They have gotten rid of some of those requirements which is unfortunate because it's much less artistic and it was the edge that all the European gymnasts had over the Americans. They started with dance or they took dance alongside of (gymnastics training).

One of the things I did with the United States gymnasts was write a syllabus for them to incorporate dance into their gymnastics workout so when they went into the gym they did what they call rotations ? the floor, the uneven bars, the vault. Basically, you make your way around and dance became one of the rotations.

Q: Did you go to the Olympics?

A: No I didn't, family called. After training I said I've given you what you need to stay on and so I stayed home with my family. I watched. Kerri Strug, she was the one that sprained her ankle, I choreographed her floor routine from the time she was seven. And then she went with (famed gymnastics coach) Bella Karolyi and once anyone goes with Bella, you sort of leave them. I taught up until last year and now I miss it terribly. I've had an interesting year. I taught at (BHS) for 18 years and at the end of last year I thought, I'm ready to do something new ? I was teaching kids of my former students.

I really wanted to be able to give back in another way. I had worked in development for Houston Ballet when I first retired and I enjoyed that. I was talking about dance. I was writing about dance. Development is about raising funds but it's more about developing relationships.

It's more about meeting people and finding out what they're interested in, not making them do what you want them to do. It's about finding out what drives them. So I decided to retire from the High School.

I snuck out quietly after year's end and did a week's course in philanthropy. It was very rewarding, very positive and I thought, 'Yeah. I have to go back into this. This is what I want to do and this is how I want to do it'.

Q: And that led to your interest in working for the NDF?

A: My husband gave me a physical for my 50th birthday. I was a very healthy person but when I went to (the doctor) they found breast cancer. That was last July. I had surgery in August. I was back and forth between the hospital but because they caught it very early, here I am.

I believe it was (my work with NDF) that really kept me going through all of that. I had something to come back to. I was travelling back and forth a lot and every time I'd come back, I would just jump right back in there.

(NDF adviser) Wendy (Davis Johnson) and (NDF programme co-ordinator) Shari (Lynn Pringle) are both so easy to work with. They were glad whenever I was there but they weren't upset if I wasn't there. They knew I was doing what I could do. And then, come January, I was ready to plant myself. And I just love it.