MEET THE TEAM
Rosemary Lane RAD RTS
Principal & Ballet Teacher
Rosemary has been teaching dance in and around Milton Keynes since 2001. Born and raised in Manchester, Rosemary trained as a teacher with the Royal Academy of Dance following her own professional dancing career. She co-founded the school with esteemed local teacher Kathleen Woollard. Kathleen retired in 2005 and Rosemary will always be indebted to her for her guidance and inspiration.
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Throughout her years of teaching, Rosemary has prepared many children and young people for successful attainment in Royal Academy of Dance ballet examinations. She has also embraced the Academy’s new curriculum designed to improve the teaching of pre-school children, ensuring her very youngest dancers receive the best possible start.
Past and present students have successfully auditioned for associate programmes and full-time vocational training at leading ballet schools including The Royal Ballet School, Elmhurst School for Dance, English National Ballet School and Central School of Ballet.
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Passionate about teaching ballet to students of all ages, Rosemary aspires to use her expertise to help every child, teenager and adult who enters her studio to reach their full potential.
Gemma Clark ARAD, RTS
Head of Junior School, Ballet & PBT Teacher
Gemma's journey in the world of dance commenced at the tender age of 2, right in the heart of her Scottish hometown. With an innate passion for movement and grace, she embarked on a remarkable path. Her dedication led her to the structured and demanding RAD syllabus, where she diligently honed her skills. At just 9 years old, she secured a coveted spot in the Junior Associate program of the prestigious Scottish Ballet.
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Gemma's unwavering commitment to the art of dance propelled her to the Dance School of Scotland, where she pursued full-time vocational training. Here, she achieved an exceptional feat, attaining Advanced 2 Ballet with Distinction and earning the esteemed ARAD recognition from the Royal Academy of Dance.
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In 2013, Gemma embarked on an exciting new chapter, furthering her professional dance education at the renowned Elmhurst Ballet School in Birmingham. It was here that she earned a coveted Diploma in Professional Dance. During her final year of training Gemma was given the opportunity to perform the soloist role Alaskan Rag, in Elite Syncopations. Additionally, she was honoured to join the Birmingham Royal Ballet on their UK tour of Sir Kenneth Macmillan's iconic production of "Romeo and Juliet."
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With her formal education complete, Gemma made a momentous decision to share her wealth of knowledge with the next generation of dancers. She embarked on an enriching journey of teacher training with the distinguished Royal Academy of Dance, under the mentorship of Rosemary Lane, ultimately earning her Registered Teacher Status in 2019. During the challenging period of lockdown, Gemma seised the opportunity to expand her expertise, becoming a certified teacher in Progressing Ballet Technique.
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For a span of six years, Gemma has been a cherished educator at RLSB. Throughout this time, her unwavering dedication and relentless work ethic have garnered her immense praise. She consistently goes above and beyond to inspire every student, fostering their full potential and cultivating a sincere adoration for the art of dance.
Owen Lane
Ballet & Contemporary Teacher, ARAD & Rambert Grades Accredited
Owen Lane began training aged 7 at the Rosemary Lane School of Ballet. During this time he completed multiple RAD and ISTD examinations and furthered his training in ballet at the Royal Ballet School Junior Associate Program in London. Using this training he was able aged 11 to gain a full scholarship to the Vocational ballet school in association with the Birmingham Royal Ballet School. He furthered his studies in Classical Ballet and various other styles over 8 years at the school.
In the early stages of his career, he performed on multiple occasions with the Birmingham Royal Ballet in productions including Cinderella, The Nutcracker, Beauty and the Beast and Two Pigeons before embarking on an international career. His first international contract came in 2014 when he joined the Croatian National Ballet. In his first season with the company, he performed roles including Prince (The Nutcracker), Don Jose (Carmen), Romeo (Romeo and Juliet), Young Prince (Scherezade) and Puck (Midsummer Nights Dream). After this time Owen was invited as a guest artist of the Slovenian National Ballet in Ljubljana for the creation of a new ballet “Doctor Zhivago” with renowned Czech choreographers Jiri and Otto Bubenicek, he was then offered the chance to join the company on a full-time basis. Over the next years, he performed in multiple productions of the Slovenian repertoire including Prince/Policeman (The Nutcracker), Benvolio (Romeo and Juliet), Benno (Swan Lake), and Orpheus (Orpheus). During his time with the Slovenian National Theatre Owen managed to attain Principal Dancer Status and toured to multiple places including theatres in Asia, South America & Europe.
Following this Owen decided that he would take the knowledge gathered during his professional career and give it back to the local community of his youth. He turned down multiple offers to continue his performance career and decided instead to launch
Milton Keynes Dance Theatre.
Owen has since gained a strong reputation for working with and developing young dancers into the best versions of themselves both on and off stage. He now holds multiple years of teaching experience both locally and internationally and dancers of the company have gone on to achieve and further their ambitions as professional dancers at vocational schools across the country.
Owen has also built up a strong choreographic repertoire during this time including: ‘Savage Beauty (Stantonbury Theatre, 2019), ’Romeo & Juliet’ (The Venue, 2020), ‘The Quality of Mercy’ (Slovenian National Ballet, 2020), ‘Pandora’ (The Venue, 2021), 'Electric Pow Wow’ (Junction, Northampton) 'Sleeping Beauty’ (The Venue, 2022) & 'The Fields of Cupid' (The Venue, 2023.
Olivia Beckett ARAD, RTS
Ballet Teacher
Olivia began her training with The Rosemary Lane School of Ballet at the age of 2 and has worked her way through the Royal Academy of Dance Syllabus to Advanced Level. She has performed regularly in the local area in various productions including “Swan Lake”, “Sleeping beauty” and “The Nutcracker” the last of which in soloist roles.
Whilst training, she has had the opportunity to pass on her love for ballet and performance through assisting with the junior school. Olivia recently achieved her Advanced 2 Ballet, gaining her ARAD title and is very grateful to Miss Rosemary for teaching her from pre-school all the way to graduation in a nurturing and kind environment.
Olivia continues to dance and has recently completed her Certificate in Ballet Teaching Studies with the Royal Academy of Dance under Rosemary's mentorship. Olivia is enjoying passing on her love for dance to our youngest pupils.
All of the teaching faculty at The Rosemary Lane Ballet School are fully qualified and DBS checked.