Ballet Victoria dancers secure coveted spots at the National Ballet

A group of young dancers from the Ballet Victoria Conservatory have been accepted into the country’s top ballet school and are ready for the national stage.

Charlotte Smith, Romy Kashyap and Josephine Gryba, all 12 years old, spent their summer in Toronto dancing, trying to get one of the 13 available spots for the National Ballet School of Canada’s Summer Dance Intensive.

And they did.

All three danced a wonderful opportunity within the National Ballet of Canada’s annual professional ballet program.

“I heard in the third week through an email that I was selected for the program,” Gryba said. “My mother and I were crying and we were just so happy.”

The auditions lasted a month and were highly competitive. Students from all over the world auditioned.

Other students from the conservatory also found a place at other major ballet schools in the country.

Seventeen-year-old Carson Simair has been accepted into the Professional Division of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School on a scholarship for the 2024/25 season.

Carson is currently in New York to participate in the renowned John Cranko Summer Intensive. His sister, Eila Simair, 14, has been offered to join the Alberta Ballet School’s Professional Division for the 2024/25 year.

“This is a proud moment, not only for our Conservatory, but for the entire Victoria region,” said Andrea Bayne, Artistic Director of Ballet Victoria Conservatory. “Many of these young dancers have trained at the BVC since the age of five and feel a deep connection to our Victoria family. Some have chosen to return to Victoria because they appreciate the high standard of training they receive here.”

Currently, two BVC students are training full-time at the National Ballet School of Canada.