Mary Poppins Flies into Beijing

Pauline — Tue, 05 Dec 2017 00:00:41 +0000

This weekend the magical story of Mary Poppins will come to life in a ballet production in Beijing.

I am quite excited about taking my daughter to this show, as I vividly remember the movie from when I was young. However what I did not know is that the Disney movie was an adaptation from a book series. Disney’s daughter fell in love with the book, and made Disney promise to make a movie out of the book. But the author P.L. Travers did not believe that the movie would work, so it took a while for Disney to persuade her to be able to make this ultimate classic movie. (This story is told in the 2013 film Saving Mr. Banks – Ed.)

The children of a wealthy and uptight family in London need a new nanny, but they are surprised by the arrival of Mary Poppins. The magical nanny takes them on adventures, and a bit of the magic rubs off on the kids’ boring parents.

“Realizing the children have a lot to learn, Mary takes them on a magical journey meeting many interesting characters on the way,” according to the show’s organizers. “From the magic of the chalk pavement drawings to feeding the birds and dancing on the chimneys, Mary shows not only the children but the whole Banks Family what is most important in life.”

At the time of writing, there are still some tickets left for the show at all three performances this weekend. Check out this link for information.

Photos: organizers and fanpop.com

Express Yourself: Dance with On Pointe Studio

On Pointe Dance Studio students have been keeping themselves on their toes. Only in their first year, the studio has had two showcases so far: one in December 2012 featuring the ballet students, and one last month for the jazz and tap classes.

On Pointe founder and lead teacher Chlöe Brydges prides herself in running a school that does more than just provide lovers of dance with professional-quality training that follows the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) syllabus. More importantly, she aims to give her students a sense of family. Chlöe believes that it is important for children to feel accepted for who they are and what they can do. This then translates to an ability to express themselves freely through their bodies and gives them pride in their work as dancers.

An accomplished dancer and teacher with multiple RAD qualifications, Brydges makes it a point to encourage her students in her firm but caring manner. She asks students to help develop choreography routines entice children to engage in what they are doing.

The result of this creative collaboration is always a joy to behold. Their recently-concluded Dance Through Time showcase at the WAB Founder’s Theater was a journey through the music of the past decades. From a Charleston-inspired number with the littlest dancers wiggling their hips and shimmying in their ‘20s costumes, all the way to the most senior of dancers who performed advanced tap routines, the evening was indeed the exciting and enthralling experience that it was promised to be.

The trip down memory lane included music from the ‘30s with On the Good Ship Lollipop, swinging and jiving to the ‘40s In The Mood and ‘50s Rock Around the Clock, disco era ‘60s Soul Bossa Nova and ‘70s You Should Be Dancing, and more recent hits like Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go from the ‘80s, Dangerous from the ‘90s and Saltwater Upside Down from the 2000s. All the dances finished to enthusiastic applause from family and friends in the audience. But the warm reception for the students was not limited only to those they hold near and dear.

On Pointe Dance Studio also gives the students plenty of opportunities to perform and prepare for their dance exams. Following the well-received showcase “Alice in Wonderland” held at International School of Beijing (ISB) in December, senior students were invited to perform at the British School of Beijing (BSB) Ball, while the junior troupe have performed at various spring fairs throughout the community.

In late May, students busied themselves with training for their first Royal Academy Ballet exams in Beijing. Brydges accompanied the advanced students to Shanghai for their examinations in June. And in August, four students will travel to Hong Kong under Brydges’ supervision to participate in “The Asian Grand Prix” Classical Ballet Competition.

Finally, when the school year resumes in September, all students will resume their rigorous training and begin to learn their choreography for the next winter production Wizard of Oz.

On Pointe dance classes are held throughout the week at the British School of Beijing Shunyi Campus, with weekend sessions at East Lake Villas in the city.

See their website for class schedules,

British School of Beijing Shunyi Campus, 9 Anhua Jie, Shunyi District (183 1094 5950 , onpointebeijing@gmail.com)顺义区顺义区安华街9号南院北京英国学校

Photo courtesy of On Pointe Dance Studio

Dana is the beijingkids Shunyi Correspondent. Originally from the Philippines, she moved to Beijing in 2011 (via Europe) with her husband, two sons and Rusty the dog. She enjoys writing, photography, theater, visual arts, and trying new food. In her free time, she can be found exploring the city and driving along the mountain roads of Huairou, Miyun and Pinggu.

On Pointe – Beijing Kids

Mary Poppins Flies into Beijing

Express Yourself: Dance with On Pointe Studio