Sue was a dance student from β Mrs Hassall driving us to the farm at the weekends with about 10 of us in the car. We could roam free on the farm or help her pick the apples which she would make into delicious apple jelly. Very often Mr Hassall would come in from fishing with a fresh salmon from the Dee and we would have it for tea.
Her generosity to us was quite incredible. I danced with the ballet company of the Cologne Opera House β We eventually became the first modern dance company in Germany training every other day in Graham.
This is when Anna Price joined us as ballet mistress having been ballet mistress for Ballet Rambert for some years. After dancing with Walter Gore in London she won a scholarship to the Graham school and danced with the company. All children coming to my school are tested without them realising it and Bartenieff Fundamentals then built into the classwork they love it! The results are amazing and increasingly primary schools are including it in their curriculum all due to the work of Dr Anita Ginter Bartenieff Educator here in Freiburg.
The training given at the Hammond was the basis for everything else I learned not only as a dancer but as a human being. Thank you Mrs Hassall! This week our student of the week is current staff member Chrissie Eccleston-Tuohy. Chrissie was a senior school dance student from I cannot explain the honour I felt and true disbelief that she thought I was good enough.
There were only three of us in the piece β Paul Jenner, Jason Barker and myself. It was the most magical time rehearsing with this scary but knowledgeable lady. She was a legend! I taught ballet, modern, jazz and tap to students aged I also danced with the older students in the schools performing company. I taught in the associate department and senior school initially and then began teaching in the lower school.
