Silver Swans: Focus on Classical

Victoria Allport
Ballet and Repertoire Faculty

Originally from the northeast of England, Victoria began her dance training at age five, progressing through RAD grades and vocational examinations and embarking on  the RAD Student Teaching Certificate at 16. Her professional career as a dancer and choreographer has spanned the UK and internationally. 

After relocating to Mexico, Victoria founded a highly successful dance school and established Acadancers, a company producing seasonal classical ballets in collaboration with the Philharmonic Orchestra of Acapulco. Alongside this, she choreographed for Mexican pop artists, performed in music videos, and completed the RAD Teaching Diploma gaining a high Distinction.  

During her tenure in Mexico, she was the recipient of a distinguished honour recognising her exceptional contribution to the arts in the state of Guerrero. 

On returning to the UK, Victoria became Head of Ballet at a leading independent school and an examiner for the Royal Academy of Dance. During this time her students excelled in exams and at the prestigious Genee competition. She is also a recipient of the Phyllis Bedells Bursary choreographic award. 

A Life Member of the RAD, Victoria is also a trustee and member of both the artistic and exams sub-committees.  She is an experienced CPD tutor, a Silver Swans® tutor since 2017, and has contributed to RAD teacher training programmes including the CDT and CBTS. Her former students include professional dancers and RAD Teaching Members working internationally. 

Sarah Platt
Ballet & Repertoire Faculty

Sarah trained with the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) from childhood grades, through the Teacher Training College, a distant-learning degree course and into postgraduate education. Research in ‘Inclusive Dance ractice’ at Postgraduate level instigated an interest in more diverse teaching. Sarah was part of the RAD Dance for Lifelong Wellbeing (DfLW) project in 2012, undertaking practice based research into the benefits and considerations when teaching older learners to dance. Having contributed to the RAD Report (2013) and presented at the DfLW conference (2013), she participated in the second phrase of the DfLW project (2017) and acted as mentor to other researching teachers. From these beginnings came the creation of the RAD Silver Swans Ballet programme, formally launched in 2017, the benefits of which Sarah is passionate about.

Sarah has had the opportunity to share the joy of Silver Swans in many contexts, particularly during the pandemic when there was a surge of interest in ways to keep fit and healthy whilst isolating or in lockdown. Sharing enthusiasm through various media and presenting in a range of situations contributed to her earning the RAD Advocacy Award in 2020. Her latest project has been developing the Seated Swans programme so that even
more people can share the joy of dance. Sarah currently enjoys teaching Silver Swans in a wide range of contexts, from church halls, through Zoom (still!), at RAD HQ and she has the great honour of teaching our prestigious Swan, Queen Camilla, whenever Her Majesty’s diary permits.

There are three different paces of ballet and repertoire classes to choose from, each 1.5 hours in duration per day.

Gentle

A nurturing and welcoming class designed for those who enjoy working at a calm pace with a mindful, low-impact approach.

Steady (SOLD OUT) Join the waiting list here

A class designed for those who enjoy working at a steady and consistent pace, with a focus on building upon a strong foundation in classical ballet.

Dynamic (SOLD OUT) Join the waiting list here

An energetic and invigorating class perfect for those who enjoy working at a faster pace.

Gentle: 11am – 12.30pm each day

Steady: 1.30pm – 3.00pm each day  (SOLD OUT) Join the waiting list here

Dynamic: 3.15pm – 4.45pm each day (SOLD OUT) Join the waiting list here

Royal Academy of Dance
188 York Road
London
SW11 3JZ

See helpful information on how to find us here.