IN|FORM | Katrina Sayce
Image by Tella Photography
Contributed by Katrina Sayce, Townsville Academy of Performing Arts
“This girl needs to learn ballet”. I had an arched back and curvature of the spine, so a doctor’s recommendation was the reason I began my dance journey.
However, it was not until the age of 7 that I fell in love with the creativity that dance encourages. I was lucky to have found my passion for teaching at a young age while working as an assistant teacher. I knew then that one day I would own my own dance studio. Fast forward to today, I have now been teaching for almost 40 years, I run my own studio with 107 classes per week with a variety of dance genres, but I don’t run these all by myself: I lead a great team of 25 employees.
I often find the public do not realise that the depth of a dance business reaches far beyond lesson planning, teaching classes in the mornings and late into the evenings. When I am asked questions like, “what is your real job?” or, “what do you do all day?” I want to laugh in exhaustion. If only they knew! My short response is I’m a dance teacher. But the truth is, I’m also a business owner and school principal who looks after the wellbeing of my students and staff with the added responsibilities of bookkeeping, payroll, marketing, merchandise buying, receptionist, cleaning (even more so with the current restrictions) and overseeing the training and development of all staff.
This job is not for the faint-hearted, it comes with stress, uncertainty and takes personal devotion to the business. However, my joy in seeing the growth and development of students throughout their childhood is why I push through the adversity and create a safe and encouraging space. 2020 reminded us of the fulfilling role of dance and music in all our lives.
I am proud of the community I have created. Through leadership and mentorship, we have a created a community of like-minded dance teachers who are role models for our students and assistant teachers. We value strong dance technique and training but not above kindness and inclusivity to allow everyone the opportunity to experience the benefits and joy of dance.
I love seeing the ways we connect through dance and would love this to reach further into the surrounding communities, towns, and cities, exposing our smaller towns and regions, and our talented students, to the incredible calibre of dance educators here in Australia. I want these students and dance communities who do not have the opportunities to travel and attend dance festivals or workshops to still experience all the excitement and passion of those kinds of events. We‘ve all experienced feelings of isolation recently, but it has also showed us what can happen when we work together.
My advice to someone who wants to share their own passion with the next generation of impressionable minds and bodies is: be the person you looked up to, who gave you the passion. Be honest, true and listen to your heart. Don’t follow the trends of others, stand up for safe dance practices and the safety and enjoyment of dance for all our children.
I’ll keep doing what I love – making children smile.