Dance troupe pass with flying colours

The 11 members of the Balandis-Lilley Ballet School for the over-50s left an examiner extolling their skills once more.

They passed their ballet, modern and tap exams during the latest visit of International Dance Teachers' Association adjudicator Yvonne Gut.

"They have been excellent and compliments to their teacher, Sandra Lilley, and her daughter, Lisa Chapman, for the choreography and the standards they have achieved.

"The dancers have done extremely well. The standards and the quality of the routine have definitely improved in the past few years. They have gone from bronze to gold bar three standard, which is very high."

The dancers have to wait to be individually told their results but Miss Gut said some of them had done well enough to consider working towards the IDTA's elite president's category of exams for next year.

They came in the same week as 16 members of the dancing school appeared on BBC1's One show displaying their skills to the Hot Chocolate hit, You Sexy Thing.

One of the dancers, Jill Neil (66), of Greencourt Drive, North Bersted, said she was hopeful of success.

She took four exams '“ three ballet and one tap.

"It went very well," she said. "We all seemed very relaxed and quite happy and Miss Gut puts you at your ease."

Part time pharmacy assistant Mrs Neil added: "The ballet school is a lovely place to come and meet other women. As well as the exercise, there's also the mental side of dancing because you are pushing yourself all the time.

"It's quite taxing but certainly worth it and getting a certificate to say you have passed an exam is the icing on the cake.

"We couldn't do any of it without Sandra and Lisa. As well as being good teachers, they care about us too."

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