During the school holidays, some of the senior Rutherford dance students were given the opportunity to attend the Unitec dance winter workshop at the beautiful Unitec dance studios in Mt Albert. During the three days we were there, we participated in a number of classes and choreographic workshops hosted by current Unitec lecturers, as well as top guest teachers from the New Zealand professional industry.

It was incredible exposure to different forms of contemporary dance, including technical training, improvisation and creative practices, hip hop fusion and more. At the end of the third day, we were able to perform some of the material introduced in classes in an informal setting, to demonstrate the new skills we had learnt and show what we had managed to create in just 3 days. The workshop was physically and creatively demanding but very rewarding and educational, a true representation of what it might be like to study dance full time at Unitec.

A number of us who attended will be auditioning for their Bachelor of Performing and Screen Arts in the hope of studying dance in a similar environment, and we are all grateful for the short taste of the course that we gained during the workshops.