Dance Academy

I came across "Dance Academy" years too late. I'm already in my thirties but I know that I would have loved every single episode of this Australian dance series when I was a teenager. There's everything in it you need: authentic characters, lots of dancing, lots of romance, a bit of drama, a bit of tragedy... the perfect mixture! Tara and her friends are highly professional dancers but they are teenagers coming of age at the same time. And none of them is a cliché. I don't like children or teenage movies that don't take children or teenagers seriously. "Dance Academy" does. It's been some time but I still remember what it felt like back than and the series feels just the same! It's so sad it ended after season three and the last season is even much shorter than the other two. I read that there might be a spin-off movie, I do so much hope there will be one!!

I really enjoy the show, but I find Tara to be extremely annoying. I wish they had made Kat or someone else the main character.

I'm a late bloomer to this show though I don't think it's never too late than 'never' to start. Neither was I particularly familiar to with this show's quality or award winning acclaim that's pushed it to being a modern favorite among both kids and adults. I also can't say for the very least 'I' was the target audience for this show, though I actually ended up really enjoying it as the drama and the writing started to really grow on me as the character's developed throughout the show's three season run.

I am glad for one as a show that's produced right here in Australia has made such a reputation to be well known overseas, Yeah I know it happens quite a lot though this is a kids/teenage show that would've been usually broadcasted around 5 pm after school. For one, the quality of this series really does show, all the characters in the show have tremendous depth and dimension that make them so incredibly unique. I can't say for certain they're like people I would've known when I was in high school, mainly cause this is set in a Dance school where the student's work an talent is put on display throughout the entire series up close and personal, they push their limits and encounter many trials and tribulations along the way, and it isn't just in the drama. The show does a great job balancing such great dance choreography and superb drama to flesh out the lives of these teenagers.

The show isn't overly glamorous nor does it resort to the obvious 'teen' or 'coming of age' clichés a lot of the time (struggles with that within the first season). While there're plenty of trashy TV shows that can't take teenagers or young people seriously, Dance Academy is a show that does actually take teenagers seriously touching upon notions such as finding out more about themselves, defining their identity and what they're thinking of seriously doing when they're older. There were also plenty of times this show wasn't afraid to take risks when concerning the plotting and overall story of each character arc within each season. At times there were characters I didn't like or were mostly annoyed by though I eventually grew to like them as the series progressed. My personal favorite is Christian Reed, his backstory touched me the most and I grew to like his development until the very end. Least favorite was Grace, she was annoying, manipulative and such a show off acting like she was already a professional, great dancer though was a poor human being. I also commend each and every one of the performers on the show for their work on this show as they've made it work.

The main theme song 'My Chance', perfectly illustrates the metaphorical meaning for this show. It shows the young courageous minds of teenagers willing to show their potential to the rest of the world to see what they're made of. Lastly, you're only ever young once in your life, you may as well enjoy it while you can cause 'everyone' grows up so incredibly fast.

Be sure to catch this on Stan, Netflix or whatever other streaming service this show is available on. The cinematic 'film' continuation is coming this year and it's bound to be a big surprise given this show's reputation.

When I first watched Dance Academy I was on a Dance movies extravaganza on Netflix. At first I was torn because it seemed like a teen drama series and those who's dating who plot lines always repel me. But I was fascinated by the fact that the whole cast could dance! Quite an achievement and set in Australia, double bonus. It also has quite a range of problems that the characters go through, professional choices, life choices, and so on. But I also love the down moments when the characters are just getting to know each other and character building. The actors make the characters believable and will raise anyone's adrenaline when you feel they are on the verge of making wrong decisions. I am extremely fond of the actor who plays Ben Tickle in the second series; he has quite a future ahead of him, charismatic and entertaining to watch.

I really liked this series and I hope there's more to come. My daughter does a mean tap, is on point, and loves lyrical and modern. I thought it was cool seeing the intense training and the true competitive nature of it all. Seeing Tara's struggles and Abigail's different struggles were interesting to me. Also watch Kat vie for her mother's real support was something I paid attention to as a mother. I'm no ballerina, so I have no shadow over my daughter. I just love seeing her performances during recitals and seeing how much she just taps outside of her class without even being aware of it. She also uses our railing for her stretching and will work her toe shoes frequently as well.

So even though there was some sort of closure for Tara's character at the end of season 2, so many new things popped up at the end that I would be very disappointed to find that there is no more to the show.