Singapore Ballet Academy

Ballet, then two well-known ballet schools in Singapore. During its formative years, SBA students and its plethora of diverse programmes entertained audiences in Singapore and then Federation of Malaya. The Academy rapidly flourished under the dynamic direction of the three dedicated personalities and over the years, played a significant role in raising the profile of dance in the Singapore arts scene and in nurturing many talented dancers. The leadership of SBA was left in the capable hands of Soonee Goh when Frances Poh and Vernon Martinus left Singapore in 1965. Ballet developments in Singapore found impetus and direction along with the growth of the Academy. With Goh Choo San, a senior student of the Academy as resident choreographer, the late sixties was a period of experimentation and prolific incubation of bold and challenging new works for SBA. As an example, the staging of the technically and emotionally demanding Giselle performed by Goh Soo Khim & Goh Choo San in 1966 struck a deep memorable note for Singapore audiences. In 1971 SBA came under the competent and inspiring guidance of Goh Soo Khim upon her return to Singapore from professional training at the Australian Ballet School. Choo San and Soonee had left the Academy to embark on ventures abroad. During the seventies and the eighties, backed by the enthusiasm and creativity of both Soo Khim and senior student Cecilia Hon SBA students were actively performing innovative and original works at National Day celebrations, the Singapore Arts Festivals as well as the Singapore Dance Festivals. Many also concurrently pursued full-time training overseas and returned as professional dancers and teachers. With the founding of Singapore’s first professional dance company, the Singapore Dance Theatre (SDT) by Soo Khim and Anthony Then in 1988, doors were opened for more performing opportunities for dance students in Singapore. Four SBA alumni joined SDT as key founding members and professional dancers, namely Jamaludin Jalil, Chantal Pestana, Elizabeth Thng and Mohamed Noor Sarman. Subsequently, Jeffrey Tan, Cheah Mei Sing, Ginny Gan, Alison Carroll and Elaine Heng were enlisted into the Company after completing their professional training overseas. The direct link with a professional dance company was a step forward which further motivated aspiring dancers to take dance education to higher levels while developing a lifelong passion for the art. SBA students have been actively involved in SDT’s full-length productions such as The Nutcracker, Coppelia, Giselle, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. Since the nineties, an increasing number of SBA students have been accepted into prestigious professional dance schools overseas such as the Australian Ballet School, New Zealand School of Dance, Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, Boston Conservatory, Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance, English National Ballet School and Central School of Ballet. Over the years, it has been richly rewarding to see many SBA alumni as prominent professionals in the performing and pedagogical dance fields in Singapore and the international dance scene.