Pioneer dance teacher Julie Barclay sells Dancehouse studio after 37 years

A longstanding Cairns dance teacher has hung up her dancing shoes after more than three decades in the industry.

After 37 years and teaching thousands of young girls and boys how to dance, Julie Barclay has sold Dancehouse dance studio, and is set to retire. Julie Baclay will say farewell to senior dancer Jordi Rix and dance teacher Gabi Terrington, who will continue with Dancehouse under new owners FNQ Dance Academy. Brendan Radke

A longstanding Cairns dance teacher has hung up her dancing shoes after more than three decades in the industry.

Dance teacher Julie Barclay, who began dancing at four years old, founded her Smithfield studio, Dancehouse, in 1988 after moving up from Melbourne.

“When I left school I worked for a dance teacher in Melbourne, and kind of did an apprenticeship and dance certificate with her,” Ms Barclay said.

“And then I travelled a bit and ended up in Cairns and I was just looking for a particular ballet class, and at that time couldn’t find any, so I thought I’d do my own and ended up starting a school.”

After three years, the Dancehouse studio was built.

After 37 years and teaching thousands of young girls and boys how to dance, Julie Barclay has sold Dancehouse dance studio, and is set to retire. Brendan Radke

“We started out just doing ballet and jazz and then slowly added the tap and contemporary and then the aerial,” she said.

Ms Barclay said it was special to see some of her former students become dance teachers themselves, or bring their children to back to the studio.

“Obviously in Cairns it’s a fairly transient area, but I’ve had children of former students come back which is kind of cool,” she said.

“I have a number of former students that are teaching dance in high school, I do have one that started her own school and it’s awesome that they’ve continued on.”

Now, after 37 years, Ms Barclay said it was time to move on.

After 37 years and teaching thousands of young girls and boys how to dance, Julie Barclay has sold Dancehouse dance studio to Sarah Thorne from FNQ Dance Academy, and is set to retire. Brendan Radke

“I’ve loved every minute of being a dance teacher but it was just time to move on,” she said.

Ms Barclay sold the business to fellow dance teacher Sarah Thorne of FNQ Dance Academy.

“Having a freehold building, I really did not know that I would be able to sell it to someone who would continue the studio,” Ms Barclay said.
“I’m really happy that Sarah has taken over and that it continues on – it would’ve been really sad to see it close down and have it disappear.”

Ms Thorne said she was honoured to take over the studio, and wanted to honour Ms Barclay’s legacy to the region.

“What she’s done over many years – she was one of the first to create a custom built facility, she was one of the first to create a stand-alone dance studio, which was very much the envy of most of us growing up,” Ms Thorne said.

“As a Cairns local, I was very keen for the legacy and for that infrastructure not to be lost to the community … There’s nothing else like it.”

Originally published as Pioneer dance teacher Julie Barclay sells Dancehouse studio after 37 years