Competitive Company, Exams & Recreational Ballet • Pointe • Tap • Modern
• Musical Theatre • Hip Hop • Jazz • Acto

McCarthy School Of Dance
755 Griffith Ct #1, Burlington, ON L7L 5R9
(905) 634-2664

Ballet, it seems, is making a comeback.
In recent years we have seen a lot more ballet entries in competitions. Once upon a time we were often the only ones entering pointe solos or ballet productions/lines. The reason being that a lot of people were under a misconception namely that ‘very few students become ballet dancers so to pay money for training is a waste. The kids like Jazz or Hip-Hop so let’s do that instead.’
No problem with that thinking at all because there is an element of truth. But taking ballet by no means limits your future to a career in ballet. Ballet is the base foundation of most dance forms. I will quote Margo Fonteyn, (the world’s most popular ballerina in the 1950’s/60’s). She said “your choice of dance school isn’t the most important choice you will ever make for your child; but the choice of dance school may be the most important choice you ever make for your child.”
What she meant was look for a dance school who can train from the ground up with knowledge. So that if your child decides to become a dancer (Martha Graham….”you do not choose dance, dance chooses you”) they don’t have to backtrack. A dancer badly trained will never have a chance of becoming a dancer or will have to go back to the beginning pre-ballet level to catch up. The good training starts at 3 years old. The 3 year old learns to keep knees over toes in a demi-plie, with good posture, and point their toes while skipping.
Ballet, taught correctly, promotes good posture (straight spine comfortable in moving through space); lines (joints and limbs moving with artistry and grace through space); co-ordination (lots of children who are not co-ordinated naturally benefit from this small practice); musicality. Music itself is therapy.
You will rarely see a dancer slouched over when walking or dragging their feet. They usually have a grace of movement and a spring to their step. It doesn’t matter what size and shape you are.
Dance students become dancers, teachers, dance school owners, choreographers, adjudicators – look at all the dance competitions around. You can’t adjudicate if you haven’t danced a lot.
The myths that ballet isn’t worth it, that dance isn’t worth it….is gradually being broken down. We see a lot of men and women who run competitions, who have danced; lots of men and women who teach – and they are married with children; lots of women and men adjudicators and teachers and organizers of competitions and workshops.
Dance is here to stay, as a valid career, and ballet is still the best form of exercise.

Nine years ago Kathrine McCarthy, teacher/choreographer and owner of McCarthy School of Dance, was asked to choreograph for the first ever Ballet Team Canada Formation. She went to Poland as choreographer with Alex Wong. Seven students from McCarthy Dance auditioned and were accepted onto the team of students from across Canada. Justina Aveyard, one of McCarthy’s senior students, was asked to perform three of her solos as well as the formations and small groups for ballet, lyrical/jazz and modern.
The ballet formations Junior and Adult, received GOLD……the Judge announced ‘The Best in the World’ out of 95 countries represented at the International Dance Organization championships as the kids crowded onto the podium….the parents, kids and coaches sang themselves hoarse as their national anthem ‘Oh Canada’ was played. Justina Aveyard received GOLD for her ballet solo; SILVER for her Jazz/Lyrical and BRONZE for her Modern against as many as 65 entries. Canadian dance students have continued to replicate this success over the last seven years receiving as many as EIGHTEEN GOLD MEDALS in one year. Justina won GOLD three years running for her ballet solo variation. When a solo, duet or formation win from any one country, the national anthem of that country is played.
Justina has trained in all genres of dance starting at McCarthy’s at age 4, and is now a professional dancer in New York contracted to Radio City Rockettes. She graduated from The Ailey School in 2016 and immediately began working for the Broadway Dance Lab. She has worked with many Broadway Stars and choreographers in such shows as Monsoon Wedding, Bat Boy, Between the Lines and most recently performed the role of Vibrata in “A Funny Thing Happened on the way to the Forum at the Muny in St. Louis. She shared the stage with stars from Chorus Line, Phantom of the Opera, Fosse, Aladdin and Wicked to name a few.
Justina is on the faculty of McCarthy School of Dance and comes home to Burlington to conduct workshops and choreograph.
Kathrine McCarthy continued to successfully choreograph and coach solos/duets and formations for Team Canada since 2010 receiving Gold and Silver regularly, and in 2016 she qualified as an International Dance Organization Judge one of the few who represent Canada at the Olympics of Dance. Kathrine is off to Poland this year in November as a World Judge representing Canada. She was in Germany last year. The approximately twenty-five Judges at any one event which take part all over the world – Italy, Russia, Germany, U.S., Australia, South Africa, Poland, etc. – alternate in groups of nine judging many different dance styles on several stages from 7 am in the morning to sometimes midnight at night for five days straight.
Take One Step……..a dance class……and you never know where it might lead!

Competitive Auditions:

Saturday June 15th. 1-3 pm