Among more than 3,000 dancers from across Europe, at the European Championship Winter Zagreb competition, recently held in the capital of Croatia, Emilija Stevanović from Niš, a member of Teatro Dance Studio, stood out in particular. This 11-year-old girl won two gold medals, in the categories of contemporary dance and musical, while in the show dance discipline she took second place. This also earned her a place at the gala evening, reserved for the twenty most successful and most notable performers.
The competition, which took place as part of the International Dance Open, brought together dance schools and studios from several European countries, and performances were evaluated through technical execution, artistic impression, and stage credibility. Emilija showed confidence, precision, and pronounced stage focus in all three performances. The choreographer was Nikola Korać from Belgrade, and her coach in Niš is Professor Romina Herodek.
- Emilija prepared for this performance for a year, so she expected success – her mother Aleksandra Stevanović, also the owner of Teatro Dance Studio, tells us. – In October, at a competition on the island of Pag, she was also first in both categories. Still, this time the competition was truly strong. Emilija competed with top dancers from Germany, Moldova, Ukraine, and Slovenia. It was an incredible experience.
A group of girls up to the age of 10, also from this studio, qualified for the gala evening as well, having won first place in their category with the choreography Mamma Mia. Gold medals at the competition were also won by students of this club Kristina Stevanović, Iskra Lukić, and Milica Mitić, while Sofija Ranđelović won a silver medal at the European dance championship.
This girl showed talent for dance as early as the age of three.
- Back then we couldn’t enroll her in a ballet school because she was very young – Aleksandra says. – She started when she turned four in a dance club. That lasted a short time.
Aleksandra says she opened the club precisely because of Emilija, who now attends the state school “Lujo Davičo” in Belgrade.
- Emilija has truly achieved great success; five years ago she became the national champion in modern ballet – her mother says. – She was involved in studio dance, but Niš does not have the capacity to support her success. I founded the club to help other talented dancers get the chance to go everywhere my child goes. Now we have more than 200 members.
Behind Emilija stands a team that believes and creates the magic she conveys on stage.
- She is still young. She competes in the children’s category – Aleksandra says. – My husband and I both have many obligations, but it’s not hard for us. Where there is dance, play, and art, it is always beautiful. We strive to provide Emilija with a normal childhood. She works a lot, but she still dances with the same joy as at the beginning. That is the most important thing to us. Successes come and go, but love for dance remains. Even though she is young, she already shows discipline and perseverance that are rarely seen.
MORE TOPICS:
Source: Novosti.rs, Foto: International Dance Open