Tiaras and Toe Shoes

When I was 10 years old, I started taking ballet lessons. Little did I know then that it would become a lifelong love of mine.

My ballet school was Ecole de Ballet Leduc, the first ballet school in the Ottawa-Gatineau region. Our ballet mistress, Yolande Leduc, had been a dancer with the San Francisco Ballet before she began teaching. I loved her!

I took many ballet classes on the top floor of this building, at the corner of Bank and Slater. As soon as I entered, I could smell Mme Leduc’s cologne. She later moved her school to Hull, closer to her home.

I only took one weekly lesson until I was 14 and old enough to start bussing downtown at night for more frequent classes. At 15, I was invited to teach beginner classes in exchange for payment for my classes.

The photo above: Me and one of my classes of young dancers.

When I was about 11, some fellow students and I danced on a Saturday morning kids’ show called Le Club du Samedi. For our auditions, we went to the CBOFT television station on the fifth floor of the Chateau Laurier Hotel, which was always a thrill. There were lights, cameras, wires, and cords everywhere! Seeing Yolande Leduc in her expensive fur coat and regular street shoes was always so exciting. I’m happy to say that we succeeded at every audition.

In one of my performances, in which I had the lead, a giant bubble was superimposed over me as I danced across the stage, making it appear that I was floating. My mom had to work that Saturday at the Laroques Department Store but was permitted to go to the television department to see me perform.

Photos below: Me, age 17. A local photographer took pictures of me to display in his new shop.

I’m almost 76 now, too old to dance, but in my heart, I can still hear the music and smell the rosin.