Six Central Albertans will board a plane to Belgium later this year to compete at an international dance competition.
Red Deerians Alexane Best, Éva Best, Kaitlyn Rumohr and Hazel Stapley, as well as Sylvan Lake’s Kaitlyn Worr and Lacombe’s Mika Prins, will all represent Team Canada at the International Dance Organization’s Jazz, Ballet and Modern/Contemporary Championships in Belgium from Nov. 27 to Dec. 3.
The Best sisters, 17-year-old Alexane and 14-year-old Éva, say they are looking forward to sharing a stage like this together.
“It’s super exciting travelling as a family and doing this with my sister. We grew up dancing with each other, so it’s going to be amazing,” said Alexane Best.
“We’re all super excited to represent Canada. We can’t wait to see all of the different countries being represented in Belgium and seeing how they all perform.”
Alexane and Éva Best, as well as 15-year-old Rumohr, all dance at Catalyst Dance Experience, while 17-year-old Stapley dances at Strive Dance Academy. Prins, 15, also dances at Catalyst Dance Experience in Red Deer and Worr, 12, dances at Dancer’s Edge Studio in Lacombe.
At the competition, Stapley and Alexane Best will compete in the adult group, while Éva Best, Rumohr and Prins are in the junior category, and Worr is in the children’s level.
Éva Best added that dance is a shared passion among all of those who are heading to the competition later this year.
“You get to be with people who love doing the same thing. You get to express yourself all in the same way,” said Éva Best.
Rumohr said she cannot wait to represent her country at an international event like this.
“I’m happy to be doing this with old friends I know from my studio Catalyst and so many new people who I’ve just met – we already feel so close as a team, which is really nice,” said Rumohr, who will travel to Belgium with her mother, father and grandfather.
“I think it’s super cool how dance can connect people who don’t even speak the same language and I’m really excited to experience that in Belgium.”
Bonnie Dyer, national director of Team Canada, said it’s positive seeing dancers from various studios coming together to represent the country.
“Canada has been quite successful in all dance disciplines at the World Championships and this is mainly due to the high standards of training that our local studios offer,” Dyer said in a media release.
The IDO, a nonprofit World Dance and Dancesport Federation, has more than 250,000 member-dancers across the globe.
sean.mcintosh@reddeeradvocate.com
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