Guest Instructors
Biography of Irene Lo
A former coryphée of Hong Kong Ballet who has performed numerous major
roles such as Juliet and Romeo and Juliet, Pu Yi’s wife in The Last Emperor
and Chu Yin Tai in Butterflies lover, Irene Lo has worked closely with HKB for
over a decade. She is the Associate Director of Training for HKB’s Classical
Ballet Training Programme and a part-time faculty member at the Hong Kong
Academy for Performing Arts (HKAPA). In 2022, she obtained her Master of
Fine Arts in Dance with distinction at HKAPA with a full scholarship from the
Hong Kong Jockey Club Music and Dance Fund.
Lo’s accolades include ‘Most Promising Dancer’ from Friends of Hong Kong
Ballet and ‘Outstanding Performance of the Year’ from the Hong Kong Dance
Alliance. Additionally, Lo was Chief Executive Manager of the Asian Grand
Prix (AGP) in 2013-2015 and served as a jury member in the Manila,
Malaysia, AGP, Canaan International Competitions and Dance World Cup. In
2024, Irene served as an examiner in the Solo Seal Award of the Royal Dance
Academy.
Biography of Jacqui Stratton- Smith
Jacqui is an RAD Examiner with a Professional Dancers Postgraduate Teaching Certificate (RAD). Jacqui studied ballet in Adelaide before completing her training at the Royal Ballet School in London where she graduated in 1990. Her first professional appointment was with Ballett Kiel followed by the Staatsballett in Berlin. During her career Jacqui danced in many classics such as Swan Lake, Giselle, Sleeping Beauty, Don Quixote and The Nutcracker along with contemporary works by Maurice Bejart and Roland Petit.
For the past 20 years Jacqui has coached and tutored ballet. Jacqui has extensive experience running master classes for workshops and has been a guest teacher at numerous summer schools. Until recently engaged as a lecturer at the Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School and at the Australian Conservatoire of Ballet in Melbourne, she has now returned to her hometown of Adelaide as a coach and consultant. Jacqui has a Certificate IV in Training and Assessment and Progressing Ballet Technique certification. She also has a Bachelor of Speech Pathology from Flinders University.
Biography of Dan Kwoh
Dan Kwoh is an award-winning choreographer, director, and educator known for his dynamic and visually stunning choreography. He has received numerous accolades, including the Grand Prix Award at the Dance Grand Prix Europe in 2014 and 2015, and the Best Choreographer Award at the Dance Grand Prix in Barcelona. His works have also earned him recognition for Best Contemporary and Ethnic Choreographic Work at international dance festivals. Born in Singapore, Dan began training in Chinese Dance at age 11 developed a passion for choreography. He received the Georgette Chen Arts Scholarship from the National Arts Council and completed professional training at LASALLE College of the Arts and the Singapore Ballet Academy (SBA), where he earned the SBA Scholarship from 2011 to 2013.
Dan performed with the Singapore Dance Theatre in Stanton Welch’s “Madame Butterfly” (2003) and Jeffrey Tan’s “The Nutcracker” (2005). As an educator, Dan teaches in the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts as an Adjunct Lecturer and at various local dance organizations and institutions. Currently, he is the director of DANSTUDIO.
Teacher’s Course
Han Kee Juan is currently the Principal of the Singapore Ballet Academy. He started teaching in the 1970s and has since trained many dancers including principals from internationally renowned companies. Upon graduation from the Australian Ballet School, he was invited to dance with the Sydney Dance Company, then Goh Ballet in Canada. In addition, he was a Principal Dancer with the Indianapolis Ballet Theatre and a Soloist with Boston Ballet. He has directed the Arizona Ballet School, The Washington School of Ballet and was also a faculty member of the North Carolina School of the Arts and a co-founder of the American Ballet competition.
He was awarded 5 prestigious teaching awards including recipient of The Excellence in Teaching Award at UNCSA. Han Kee Juan was named best Teacher at the Youth America Grand Prix in 2000 and 2015, and in 2008 received the Dance Teacher Award for best teacher of the year. Under his Directorship, The Washington School of Ballet was awarded the Outstanding School Award at the Youth America Grand Prix for six years.
Han Kee Juan will be leading a teacher’s course in classical technique and repertoire. Teachers will be expected to participate physically in simple and non-strenuous exercises. He will be sharing his teaching philosophy and how to structure exercises. The classical technique class will concentrate on barre work, center exercises, pirouettes and allegro. In Repertoire coaching, teachers will be able to observe how Mr Han coaches two students (male and female) in their prepared variations. In addition, a variation will be taught to teachers whereby they can experience the coaching for themselves.
DATE
September 16th 2024
9:30 – 16:00
Fee: (3 sessions, 5 hours total)
TDS Member – RM600
Non-member – RM750
FEE PACKAGE
This workshop is designed to be progressive in learning and content across the three days
| Package | TDS Member | Non-member | Observer |
|---|---|---|---|
| FULL PACKAGE (Ballet + Contemporary) 7 classes total | RM820 | RM1000 | RM80 per class |
| BALLET PACKAGE 4 classes total | RM520 | RM640 | RM80 per class |
| CONTEMPORARY PACKAGE 3 classes total | RM390 | RM480 | RM80 per class |