A JERSEY ballerina is enhancing her reputation as a dancer with Spain’s first professional classical ballet company.
Carrie Walsh, a former Miss Grouville, has been performing La Bayadere in Madrid with Corella Ballet, a company founded by ballerina Angel Corella, and she is delighted with the latest stage of her career. ‘To be part of such a prestigious company has been such an honour,’ said the 23-year-old. ‘Everybody has been giving everything they’ve got and the audience and all the sceptics have seen that Spain can at last have a professional ballet company.’
The show was well received by the audience and tickets were snapped up in the run-up to the opening night. ‘The tickets sold out within three days of going on sale,’ Carrie said. ‘The interest in Spain has been phenomenal.’
The company is run by Angel Corella, the world-famous ballerina who wanted to create a reason to stop Spain’s best dancers leaving their country to find work. Carrie has been inspired by her new director.
‘Angel Corella is treated like a superstar here in Spain and around the globe,’ she said. ‘The Princess of Spain has also been a major supporter of Angel’s project.’ Carrie is one of 50 dancers and had to compete with more than 1,000 other applicants for the role. The young Jersey ballerina was delighted that her family were able to watch the première and said that she was ‘dancing for them’ to thank them for all of their support in helping her achieve her dream.
Carrie was also comforted by the presence of a fellow Islander Philip Ellis, who was conducting the orchestra for the show. Philip has been the principal conductor of the Jersey Symphony Orchestra since 1995 and Carrie said that it was great to be working with someone connected to Jersey. Having finished their run in Madrid, the company are now starting an international tour which includes performances in America, Brazil, Japan and possibly London.
• Picture: Carrie rehearsed hard for her role in La Bayadere in Madrid
