Biography: Danette Bell

Jazz

A member of The Professional Dance Teachers Association, Danette Bell has successfully operated her own school of dance since 1979. Here she has aided students in achieving recognition with visual and performing arts awards at local, provincial, national and international levels. A progressive, energetic and dedicated teacher, Danette has studied dance for over thirty years and has trained with major Hollywood faculties in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Seattle, San Francisco, Salt Lake city, Las Vegas and Los Angeles. This has allowed her to further her knowledge of choreography and the art of dance under the tutelage of such international dance luminaries as Gilbert, Luigi, Giordano, Tremaine and Le Tang. Danette has worked with producers and directors from Vancouver to Los Angeles and a few of her credits include Guys and Dolls, South Pacific, Bye Bye Birdie, Rock On, Cinderella Meets the Wolfman, and Nunsense.

Some of her accomplishments include choreography of the much heralded and raved about musical, rediscovering the River, and the still talked about Through the Eyes of a Child; a show which Danette conceived, produced, directed and choreographed. Danette was an integral part of the opening ceremonies for the 1995 Festival of the Arts and has had an unprecedented run of three consecutive Most Entertaining awards at the North Island Festival of Music. She has been the recipient of four choreography awards at international competitions and has choreographed numerous school stage productions and local performing arts groups. As well as these, she also organizes the annual, much looked forward to, sell-out shows produced under the banner of her school. For the first time ever, Danette produced, directed and choreographed the mini production of Cinderella. This was an overwhelming success. The Royal Winnipeg Ballet, the Banff School of Fine Art, Dupree Exposition and the Tremaine Dance Academy out of Los Angeles are just a few of the many places awarding scholarships to Danette’s students over the years.

Danette’s talents as a teacher are also employed by the local School district 72, Parksville Ballet School, Harbour Dance Naniamo and, in the past, Laszio Tamasik School of Dance. Most recently Danette adjudicated the Jazz Dance category in the Danceworks Festival in Victoria and was an artistic judge for the BC Junior Ice Skating Championships.

Danette has also served on the Board of Directors of the Tidemark Theatre. She has produced and directed fundraisers for the Tidemark such as Fashiondance 1 and 2 and the Festival Showcase – a Tidemark and Cystic Fibrosis fundraiser.