thumb|349px|right|Season 2 on 12 March 2012!
Plot
Dance Academy is an Australian teen-oriented television drama produced by Werner Film Productions in association with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and ZDF. Series one premiered on 31 May 2010, and series two is scheduled for 2012.
The Main Cast
The events in the show are primarily seen from the perspective of Tara Webster, a new student at the National Academy of Dance. She, along with fellow students Katrina Karamakov, Ethan Karamakov, Samuel Lieberman, Abigail Armstrong and Christian Reed, will learn the ins and outs of ballet. Series two will see Tara return to the Academy for her second year and the hope of representing Australia in the international ballet competition "Prix de Fonteyn". This series will introduce characters Grace Whitney and Ben Tickle.
Production
Dance Academy is produced by Joanna Werner's film company Werner Films Productions in association with the Australian Broadcasting[1]Corporation, Screen Australia, Film Victoria, Film New South Wales and ZDF for Germany.
Casting and Filming
Casting for series one began in early 2009 in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney. All cast members had to be skilled in drama and dancing and had to cope with Australia's best choreographers. Filming began on 13 July 2009 and wrapped in early November. Production of series two was officially green-lighted by ABC and ZDF on 2 July 2010. Casting calls were issued on 14 September 2010, and principal photography in Sydney is scheduled to take place between 31 January and 4 August 2011. Series two will be released to broadcasters in 2012.
Premiere
The series was originally announced to premiere in mid 2010 on ABC3, however, like Dead Gorgeous, the premiere was pushed to ABC1 on 31 May 2010 and ABC3 on 6 June 2010. The first series premiered on Germany's ZDF on 26 September 2010.
Main Cast
| Actor | Character | Series |
|---|---|---|
| Xenia Goodwin | Tara Webster | 1, 2 |
| Alicia Banit | Kat Karamakov | 1, 2 |
| Dena[2]Kaplan | Abigail Armstrong | 1, 2 |
| Tom Green | Samuel Lieberman | 1, 2 |
| Jordan Rodrigues | Christian Reed | 1, 2 |
| Tim Pocock | Ethan Karamakov | 1, 2 |
| Tara Morice | Miss Raine | 1, 2 |
| Tom Lacey | Ben Tickle | 2 |
| Issi Durant | Grace Whitney | 2 |
DVD releases
The Australian Broadcasting Company has released the all 26 episodes from series one on DVD over four volumes and on The Complete First Series compilation.
| Title | Release Date | Episodes |
|---|---|---|
| Dance Academy -''
Learning to Fly |
1 July 2010 | 1. "Learning to Fly, Part 1", 2. "Week Zero", 3. "Behind Barres", 4. "Minefield", 5. "Real Men Don't Dance" |
| Dance Academy -''
Growing Pains |
2 September 2010 | 6. "Perfection", 7. "Crush Test Dummies", 8. "Growing Pains", 9. "Heartbeat", 10. "Through the Looking Glass", 11. One Perfect Day", 12. "Pressure" |
| Dance Academy -''
Turning Pointe |
2 September 2010 | 13. "Family", 14. "Turning Pointes", 15. "My Life En Pointe", 16. "Free Falling", 17. "A Midsummer's Night's Dream", 18. "Betty Bunheads", 19. "Fairest and Best" |
| Dance Academy -''
Ballet Fever |
7 October 2010 | 20. "Ballet Fever", 21. "FOMO: Fear of Missing Out", 22. "Flight or Fight Response", 23. "BFF: Best Friends Forever", 24. "Heatwave", 25. "The Deep End", 26. "Learning to Fly, Part 2" |
| Dance Academy -''
The Complete First Series |
2 December 2010 | All 26 episodes from series one. |
Books
ABC Books has released five paperback novels, each based on a particular episode and from the perspective of a single character. The books are published by ABC Books and HarperCollins Australia.
- Dance Academy: Tara: Learning to Fly, by Meredith Costain
- Dance Academy: Sammy: Real Men Don't Dance, by Bruno Bouchet
- Dance Academy: Christian: Behind Barres, by Sebastian Scott
- Dance Academy: Kat: Anywhere but Here, by Bruno Bouchet
- Dance Academy: Abigail: Through the Looking Glass, by Rachel Elliot
| Ceremony | Award | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 AWGIE Awards | Children's Television: C Classification | "Growing Pains" by Sarah Lambert | Nominated |
| 2010 AWGIE Awards | Children's Television: C Classification | "Turning Pointes" by Greg Waters | Nominated |
| 2010 Australian Directors Guild Awards | Best Direction in a Television Children’s Program | "Behind Barres" by Jeffrey Walker | Won |
| 2011 TV Week Logie Awards | Most Outstanding Children's Program | Dance Academy |