14 September 2022 11:48

Leanne Cope to take the masterclasses for the RAD Dance Challenge and Bedells Bursary

We are pleased to announce that Leanne Cope will lead the masterclasses for the RAD Dance Challenge and Bedells Bursary candidates on Saturday 29 October.

These are part of the two day competition for applicants – masterclasses take place on Saturday 29 October, and performance of Dance Challenge solos and the Bedells Bursary class and solos take place on Sunday 30 October.

The closing date for the Bedells Bursary is 26 September 2022 at 12:00pm, so there's still time to apply. You could win £1,000, and a further £250 in recognition of your own choreography.

About Leanne

Leanne was born in Bath and started dancing aged five at her local dancing school Dorothy Colebornes School of Dance. She trained at The Royal Ballet School lower and upper school and joined The Royal Ballet Company in 2003. Whilst there she danced in all the classic repertoire and created roles in ballets choreographed by Liam Scarlett, Christopher Wheeldon, Jonathan Watkins and Wayne McGregor.

In 2014 she took a sabbatical from The Royal Ballet to create the role of Lise Dassin in the four-time Tony winning musical An American in Paris on Broadway for which she was nominated for a Drama Desk Award and a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical, and won The Astaire award for The Best Female Dancer on Broadway. She then revived the role and made her debut in London's West End.

Leanne is a regular presenter for The Royal Opera House for their live events on YouTube and is currently on the ballet faculty at Laine Theatre Arts and will graduate from The Royal Ballet School's professional dancers teaching diploma this Autumn.