Zoe McLister's dance game is en pointe.
While the 10-year-old ballet dancer isn't on pointe shoes yet, she is perfecting her moves and has earned a spot in the Royal Winnipeg Ballet's summer program.
From July 3-22, Zoe will be in the Manitoba capital to experience life at the professional dance school through training and living in the student dorms.
A Grade 5 student at École publique Lionel-Gauthier, she's been dancing most of her life.
Along with ballet, her schedule at Classical Dance Arts includes acro, jazz, tap, hip-hop, contemporary, and musical theatre.
Her first audition was for a program at the National Ballet of Canada, which she didn't get. When her mom asked if she wanted to audition for the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, Zoe jumped at the chance.
“I auditioned on a Zoom meeting downstairs and I was super nervous. I didn’t think I would get in because I messed up a million times. We were doing pirouettes and I had no idea how to do them so I just did it," she said.
Ballet is the first dance class Zoe ever took about eight years ago.
She loves doing floor work and practising waltz steps from corner to corner at her dance studio run by Cathy McKeown on Lincoln Avenue.
“I like how elegant it is. It’s fun to do, but hard also,” she said.
Along with the classes, Zoe is excited to make new friends and stay in the dorms.
This is the sixth dancer in 14 years from McKeown's studio who has earned a spot in the prestigious summer program.
“I’m pretty proud of them when they achieve that acceptance because it’s a big deal,” said McKeown.
The Winnipeg ballet has a year-long professional study program and the summer training is one of the steps in getting accepted.
“It’s still an excellent experience regardless for them, whether they are accepted for the program continuously or not. It’s still a valuable training process for them,” she said.
