13-year-old boy moving halfway across Canada to pursue ballet dream

A Lower Sackville, N.S., boy and his parents are making the move to Winnipeg to give their son a chance at his dream of dancing ballet at the highest level. 

For a second year in a row, 13-year-old Aidan Vaudreuil has been accepted to and granted a full scholarship for the prestigious Royal Winnipeg Ballet School. 

The Royal Winnipeg Ballet School is home to more than 1,500 students and has been providing dance education for nearly 80 years. 

Vaudreuil went to Winnipeg for the ballet's summer program in 2017 but decided it was too soon to spend an entire year away from his friends and family. So he returned to his Halifax-area home and studio for another year. 

This year, Vaudreuil is ready. 

"We're going to miss him a lot," said Vaudreuil's instructor of five years, Alicia Paton Clavette.

"Some of his classmates feel like class won't quite be the same without his energy and his love for dance, but we're very proud of him and we think it's a really good fit for him to be going to Winnipeg."

Clavette began teaching Vaudreuil when he was in Grade 4. He quickly graduated to the school's more senior dance program.

"And from there his progression kept going and going and going," she said.

Vaudreuil now dances six days a week at the Maritime Dance Academy in Bedford.

"His dedication to dance has been amazing to watch," said Clavette.

Vaudreuil, who is also trained in modern dance, contemporary, jazz and tap, said ballet is his favourite. Dancing helps him relax.

"It's really challenging, but when you're doing it you have to make it look peaceful and nice as you're struggling to do stuff," he said, explaining ballet is a blend of extreme flexibility and precise control. 

"You have to think about a million things at once."

Vaudreuil, along with his parents — who will be travelling back and forth between Winnipeg and Halifax for the next year — are getting ready to make the move to Winnipeg ahead of September classes. 

"I'm excited to start the year, but I'm going to miss my home and my friends and my family," said Vaudreuil.

He said if he likes the program, he will stay until high school. His goal is to one day be a principal dancer at a prestigious ballet company.