Sophie aims for the stars

WHEN Sophie Mackay sits down to watch 'So You Think You Can Dance', she dreams of a time when she will be old enough to enter the dance competition.

WHEN Sophie Mackay sits down to watch her favourite show 'So You Think You Can Dance', she dreams of a time when she will be old enough to enter the television dance competition.

But for now the 14-year-old Gympie dancer is committed to improving her dancing skills so that one day she may become a professional dancer.

Sophie's dance teacher Michelle Weber from the Cooloola Dance Academy says the young ballerina is well on her way to achieving her goals after receiving Honours plus in her first major classical ballet exam in Brisbane recently.

“Honours plus is not a common mark - there are normally only one or two girls do that well,' Michelle said.

“Most of the girls who reach that level are 16 or 17 so, for Sophie to do so well at 14, shows how well she is doing.”

The Saint Patrick's College student trains anywhere from 10 to 15 hours a week and has gained top marks in jazz, tap and hip hop dancing as well.

Her versatility has her eyeing an audition for the Channel Ten dance show in the future and a meeting with her idol, Jack Chambers (the 2008 So You Think You Can Dance winner) has only strengthened her desire to make it as a professional dancer.

Sophie's first love is ballet and she would love to one day dance with the Australian Ballet.

She has just returned from a week-long workshop with the famous ballet in Melbourne and says the experience was unbelievable. “We danced from 9am to 4pm every day - it was hard work, but good experience,” Sophie said.

The ballerina starting dancing at age three and is hoping to continue her career after auditioning for the Queensland School of Dance Excellence later this year.

Originally published as Sophie aims for the stars