RAD New Zealand | RAD NZ: Silver Swans Workshop Days

Booking Deadline:

Thursday 15 October 2026

Event Date:

Sunday 18 October 2026

Event Time:

9.30am – 4.00pm

Country:

New Zealand

Location:

Christchurch

Available Online?

Who’s it for?

Silver Swans and Adult dancers

Fee:

$85

Contact:

office@rad.org.nz

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Christchurch Silver Swans Workshop Day 2026

Experience the joy of movement at our Silver Swans workshop in Christchurch.

Tailored for older learners, this inspiring day includes Repertoire, Musical Theatre, and Ballet Technique classes led by expert tutors. Come along to enjoy dancing in a friendly and welcoming environment with fellow Silver Swans from the Christchurch region.

Our Silver Swans workshops are open to everyone—whether you’re a current Silver Swan, attend other adult or senior ballet classes, or are brand new to dance and curious to give it a try. No matter your experience level, we’d love to welcome you. Come along to enjoy movement, music, and the joy of dancing in a friendly and supportive environment.

Venue

JK Performing Arts – Formerly Levings School of Dance

96 Disraeli Street, Sydenham, Christchurch

Tutors

JX3189 | Royal Academy of Dance — **Shaun James Kelly**

Ballet Repertoire and Technique

Musical Theatre (to be confirmed)

Tutor Bios

Shaun James Kelly

Scottish-born dancer and choreographer Shaun James Kelly is recognised as one of Aotearoa’s most exciting creative talents, celebrated for both his “classical majesty” on stage and his “spellbinding brilliance” as a choreographer. With a career spanning Scotland, England, Denmark, and more than a decade with the Royal New Zealand Ballet, Shaun has earned international acclaim for his innovative works, including the critically praised Prismatic and Chrysalis. Twice awarded the Harry Haythorne Choreographic Award, he continues to push the boundaries of classical technique while inspiring the next generation of dancers through his teaching and mentorship.

With his choreography reviewed as “classical majesty”, “spellbinding brilliance” and “pushing classical technique to the edge”, and his dancing described as “needle sharp”, “magnificent, generous, vivacious” and “effortless”, Scottish-born Shaun James Kelly is one of Aotearoa’s most exciting performers and choreographers, his career spanning Scotland, England, Denmark and—for more than a decade—New Zealand with RNZB.

Two-time winner of the Harry Haythorne Choreographic Award (2016; 2023), Shaun has choreographed for music videos, NZ Fashion Week, Auckland Live, Massey University, Cystic Fibrosis NZ, the New Zealand School of Dance, the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, YAGP, Svendborg Ballet Theatre (Denmark), and RNZB – becoming Choreographer in Residence in 2018. His acclaimed reimagining of Prismatic for RNZB’s 70th Anniversary “Platinum” in 2023 found its way to audiences nationwide in 2024 was brought back in 2025 in collaboration with his native Scottish Ballet. The world premiere of his piece Chrysalis in 2025 was received with critical acclaim as, simply, “pure magic”.

Versatile, committed and vigorously talented, he has successfully choreographed pieces through Zoom, attesting to an eye for detail and initiative that transcends physical boundaries, as well as in complex and multi-levelled environments such as the Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, the latter readapted for stage at the Tempo Dance Festival Te Rerenga o Tere in 2024. His Scottish-inspired work Alba featured twelve male dancers at Wellington’s Government House Gardens in 2022 and was his first digital screen piece. With inspired and respected leadership, he mentors young dancers with the RNZB National Mentor Programme, and with the Royal Academy of Dance he oversees the Summer School Choreographic Workshops and shares his passion with the Silver Swans^®.

Musical Theatre (to be confirmed)

Further information

What to bring?

Comfortable clothes to dance in
Ballet shoes will be required when dancing on the tarkett floor, these shoes must be clean and are not to be worn outside of studios.
Jazz shoes if available.
Lunch, morning tea and afternoon tea.

How to book

We use Trybooking for our events. Please click on the Book now button to be taken to the booking page

Terms and Conditions

Applicants are asked to apply early to ensure a place as each workshop has a limited number of places.

Fees

All fees are inclusive of GST. The Academy reserves the right to amend fees where either tax changes take place during a calendar year or circumstances, such as the introduction of or a devaluation of a currency.

Closing Dates

Closing dates will be published locally, but the general rule is that closing dates is 10 days prior to the date of the workshop.

General Terms and Conditions

All applications and payments will be processed in order of receipt.
Correspondence will be sent primarily via email, if the email address is incorrect the RAD cannot be held responsible for missed or misdirected email communications.
Applications are non-transferable.
The Academy reserves the right to alter the advertised programme and/or tutor without prior notice. The information in this and other printed or electronic brochures/notices is correct at the time of print or going online.
If participant information is not received it is the responsibility of the individual who completed the booking to contact us to arrange for the information to be reissued:

Withdrawals, Transfers and Refunds

A refund of 80% of the fee will be considered for cancellations on medical grounds and on receipt of a medical certificate up to 14 days prior to the course commencement.

In limited situations on compassionate grounds, a refund of 80% of the fee will be considered for cancellations due to a family emergency up to 14 days prior to the course commencement. To apply, please contact the National Director: info@rad.org.nz

There will be a 50% refund for cancellations received less than 14 days prior to the course commencement with a medical certificate.

Force Majeure

The RAD shall not be liable to refund fees or any other penalty should activities be cancelled due to any cause whatsoever beyond their control.

Press and Publicity Consent

During the Silver Swans day RAD staff may take photographs and video recordings. All photographs and video recordings will be the property of the RAD.

The Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) does not allow photographs, video, audio (sound) recording or any other images of anyone to be taken without their consent, or consent of their parent/guardian.

By submitting the registration form, you will give the RAD your consent to be photographed/filmed by RAD staff during the day. Photographs/videos may be used by the RAD for the following purposes, and we may share them with our partners or sponsors for the same purposes.

As promotional material in RAD publications (print and digital)
On the RAD website and social media channels
To distribute to press and media outlets to use in their print/digital publications and on their social mediachannels, as requested.
In news programmes/press publications for a story/article about Silver Swans

The RAD will only keep and use the photographs/videos for as long as is appropriate for business purposes (this means, for as long as we need to have access to the images/videos in order to operate as a company).
You are free to withdraw your consent at any time by sending an email to info@rad.org.nz. You do not need to specify a reason why you are withdrawing consent as well.

Data Protection Statement

The CPD Department hold information and contact details requested at the time of your booking that enable them to provide you with information relating to a participant’s registration for an activity. We will not disclose your information to a third party except where legally required to do so. In addition, our Privacy Statement and Company Privacy Policy are available to view and download: The CPD Privacy Statement is available to view online here. The full RAD Privacy Statement is available to view online here.

ROYAL ACADEMY OF DANCE, RAD, RAD PRE-PRIMARY IN DANCE, RAD PRIMARY IN DANCE and SILVER SWANS are registered (and in some territories unregistered) trademarks ®/™ of the Royal Academy of Dance. RAD INTERMEDIATE FOUNDATION, RAD INTERMEDIATE, RAD ADVANCED FOUNDATION, RAD ADVANCED 1, RAD ADVANCED 2, RAD CLASS AWARD, RAD SOLO PERFORMANCE AWARD, DANCE TO YOUR OWN TUNE, CBTS and KARSAVINA SYLLABUS are unregistered trademarks™ of the Royal Academy of Dance. The use or misuse of the trademarks or any other content of this publication, without prior written permission from the Royal Academy of Dance is strictly prohibited.

The Royal Academy of Dance is a charity registered in England and Wales No 312826 and in New Zealand No CC21861

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