Young jazz dancer makes top

Waimarino Bulletin, Volume 6, Issue 254, 14 September 1988, Page 16

Young jazz dancer makes top

Cherie Young, who says she "just likes dancing for people", has recently passed the top exam in jazz dancing - her Solo Seal. She now looks forward to being successful in the top three stages of classical ballet, studying under Joy Wilson of Taihape. The exam she passed involved performing two dances she had previously practised and one impromptu dance, where the examiner playcd a piece of music and then Cherie made up a dance routine to suit. In ihe impromptu

test the dancer has to work out a way to start the dance, look for the beat and follow it, listen for changes in tempo, and finish the dance on the right note. Cherie said impromptu dance is fun, that she likes making up dances. Cherie is Joy Wilson's first pupil to pass the Solo Seal exam. Looking to classical dance, Cherie said it is harder than jazz because it relies heavily o n technique. "Anyone with a good sense of rhythm and who enjoys dancing

can do jazz," said Cherie. She said she likes jazz music more than the classical accompaniments but likes classical dance because it is such a challenge. Also, classical training helps jazz because it makes a dancer stronger and more flexible. Cherie's dancing is well known in the Waimarino and indeed in the country as a member of Spectrum Dancers, formed last year. Thc group competed well in a television talent show last year.