Local ballerina looking for a chance

Her name is Jemina Bowring. She is 15 years old and attends
Grade 9 at Northcliff High School. She started studying ballet at
age 4. Since then it has been all about her passion for ballet,
discipline and hard work.
Rhalda Dowring[Jemina's Mother] From the beginning she stood out.
She had soul. But she is not "naturally talented" and has always
had to work very hard at her technique. So to get this far she has
had to be extremely focused and dedicated. She never misses ballet
practice, even when sick, she will still go to class and watch.

In South Africa, Jemina has won many distinctions and
consistently landed lead roles one her way to becoming one of the
top young ballet dancers in the country. Along the she has even
managed to do well in school.

Rhalda Dowring[Mother]

She achieved distinctions for all her ballet exams, won at all
the ballet Eisteddfods and Festivals and always got the lead role
in studio concerts and shows. Jemina also does well at school and
has thus far achieved distinctions in all subjects in every grade
but for now we need another level of concentration.

So this year she and her mother made the decision that she would
do home schooling. It was a tough decision, her mother says, but
one that allows her to focus more of her time and energy on
dancing.

Rhalda Dowring[Mother]

What this means is that ballet starts at 8am to 7pm every day
including Saturdays and the odd Sunday. She does school work and
studying during her lunch break and in the evenings from about 8:30
to 10:30. She also watches her weight, because, yes, ballet dancers
have to be slender, and have lots of energy, but definitely not
anorexic. She is extremely health conscious!!

Jemina and the other dancers, call it "The White Box" because
that's what it is just a big hall with white walls and a white
dance mat over a sprung wooden floor with lots of mirrors for young
dancers. Inside the hall, Jemina's Ballet Master, Martin Schonberg,
takes the students through their paces. Schonberg, a highly
experienced professional, says that knowing how to dance is not
enough. The most successful dancers he says are those that are well
educated and well trained.

Martin Schonberg

I teach them not only physical ballet but also history of dance,
the different methods of classical ballet, anatomy, about artists,
sculptors, composers, famous dancers from all over the world, all
facets that are needed to be a fully rounded wholesome dancer.

For now Jemina spends most of her time with Martin and a score
of other dancers in the white box. But her ultimate aim is to
attend one of the Prestigious International Ballet Schools in
Europe. To do that she has entered The International Prix De
Lausanne Classical Ballet Competition in Switzerland, one of the
biggest and most competitive in the world.

Martin Schonberg

We submitted a video of Jemina to judges, and because of that
she qualified for the next round where a herd of hundreds of
dancers has been reduced to 70. This year, she is the only South
African to have made it this far. Jemina

I love ballet but I don't have any illusions. I know every
ballerina if she makes it big can only dance for so many years.
That's why my long-term aim is to get a degree in sports medicine,
so that when I retire from dancing I can help dancers with their
injuries. In the meantime, I'm going to become a professional
ballerina because I have to. It's in my soul.

The next round of competitions will be held in Switzerland from
the 25th to the 31st of January 2010. There she will be judged
throughout the whole week. Then only 15 candidates will be selected
to go to the finals where they will be offered busaries and
scholarships to some of the finest ballet schools in the world.

In the meantime, her teacher and her family are working hard to
raise the R130,000.00 they need to cover her costumes, point shoes,
air fare, accommodation, food and most of all the private lessons
necessary to prepare her for the next level of competition. And
what makes it all worthwhile?

Jemina

Wherever I go, I represent my country. So I would love for
people to come see me dance on stage and say ‘There goes Jemina
Bowring. She's a prima ballerina and she's from South Africa'.

Contact:
Rhalda Dowring 011-476-8354; 084-576-4473
Vern & Bernard O'Rian 011-442-6216
Martin Schonberg 0833-911-602
Jemina Dowring 079-885-4360