INNISFAIL - The pure joy of artistic dance for the 2019 Canada Winter Games in Red Deer has already begun for 11 eager young local ladies.
The 11 ladies from Innisfail's Joy's School of Dance, mostly intermediate with some seniors between the ages of 13 and 17, will be performing in different groups at the opening ceremonies on Friday, Feb. 15 at the Centrium. The 11 local dancers include Camryn Babb, Kaylyn Bates, Abby Jackson, Shianna Lind, Shelby Mackie, Madisyn Matheson, Lily Nika, Brooklyn Oxtoby, Kylie Powers, Lize-Marie Hoffman and Paige Van.
They will be joined by other dancers from Red Deer, Lacombe, Sylvan Lake, Olds, and other schools across Central Alberta.
The theme of the opening ceremonies will be A Celebration of Moments and participants will weave memorable moments into a variety show designed to welcome athletes and also to celebrate the community.
"It is kind of like the Olympics when they do their opening ceremonies and there are a number of different aspects involved," said Joy McIlwain, owner of the local dance school, adding her dancers were chosen after being invited to an open call audition in Red Deer. "They showed up and were divided into groups, whether it was according to ability, height, sizing for costumes -- there is any number of reasons they can be divided into different groupings for different production numbers that are part of the ceremony."
McIlwain said each of her dancers received emails with videos of several musical numbers that lay out what the choreography will be for their Winter Games performances. "The girls are doing three or four each," she said.
In the meantime, the club, which has a total membership of about 100 dancers from the ages of three to 18, is also preparing for its annual Princess Tea event before the Winter Games in early February at the Innisfail Library/Learning Centre. While it is a fundraiser for the school, it's also an opportunity for dozens of local dancers to express their gratitude for the ongoing support from Innisfailians.
"It is something the club would like to do for the Innisfail community," said McIlwain. "So doing the Princess Tea is a way our girls can dress up. It is inexpensive. Every little girl dreams of being a princess.
"They (public) can come and our girls can serve them, perform for them and play games with them. It is a community support thank-you performance."
While McIlwain is excited about the upcoming Princess Tea, which featured 30 club dancers performing for about 120 citizens at its last event in late 2017, she is especially proud of the 10 young ladies who have stepped up to make their mark at next month's Canada Winter Games.
"It is just so nice to see the girls taking on that ambition to go and try out for some of these opportunities," she said, noting the past success stories of older dancers who have used major events as stepping stones for future opportunities. "It's nice to see the younger ones learn from their experiences that they can go and audition for something like this. It doesn't matter where you come from. Work hard and they can achieve whatever they put their mind to."
