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The
Studio ,
as it is now known, also has an interesting history.
Built in 1893, it stands in the garden of 20
Vyvyan Terrace and it is rumoured that it was once a Swedish diplomatic
building that contained a
gymnasium. This is probably why on either side of the main entrance
the words “Swedish Gymnasium” are
carved.
In
the early 1920's it was acquired by the
prima ballerina, Miss Phyllis Bedels, and
when she founded her
ballet school in Bristol, it became known as “The
West of England Academy”. A plaque bearing this name
is on one of the doors of the studio to commemorate this. Miss Bedels,
together with a small group of eminent
dance professionals, went on to organise the emergence of the “Association
of Operatic Dancing” in
Great Britain.
In
1935 this became “The Royal Academy
of Dancing”, now known as “The Royal Academy of
Dance”,
and is acknowledged and respected worldwide.
Today's
Bristol School still carries on the strong tradition of classical
ballet with teachers who are all fully
qualified and registered with both The Royal Academy
of Dance and The Imperial Society
of Teachers
of Dancing. The School has, over
more recent times, also added jazz,
tap, national,
and musical theatre
studies to its wide-ranging curriculum.
The
Bristol School has the privileged position of regularly supplying children
for productions at the Bristol
Hippodrome theatre and has provided the “babes” in pantomime
at this theatre for well over half a century.
The
standard of training at the school is renowned to the extent that many
students are gladly considered for
places at major academies such as “Elmhurst”,
“The London Studio Centre”,
“The Arts Educational
School” and “The Royal
Ballet School”.
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