04/09/2026
Last night was a very special full circle moment for me - I got to honour the incredible Barbara Holden, who I was so fortunate to have as my teacher and mentor. She was a superbly gifted teacher, way ahead of her time in many ways, and she had a special instinct for choreography, stage craft and story telling. She was also demanding, very eccentric, and had an extremely off beat (some might call it offensive,) sense of humour - certainly not everybody's cup of tea, but I ADORED her. She would often make us cry in class and throw the loo roll at us to mop up our tears 😜 She even 'fired' a whole class one year because she was fed up with the parents - very different times. I credit her with so much of what I understand about teaching - she imparted knowledge to me that no teaching exam ever could.
I bought a very special choreography of hers 'Red Shoes,' many years ago, before she passed away, as I didn't want this legacy choreography to be lost. Alexia Olivier thank you for bringing this beautiful, complex and 'old school ballet solo' to life once again. I think Aunty Barbs would have been so happy with the way you performed it. What's even more special is that Alexia's mom Saretha Janse van Rensburg was also a student of Barbara's. Truly a full circle moment - some stories go way beyond the competition.
