Local dancing queen Eliane Berwers off to Dance Theater of Harlem
PHILIPSBURG — Eliane Berwers has left the island of St. Maarten for a three-week summer intensive program of the Dance Theater of Harlem in New York this month. Not only due to the 15-year old’s determination but also thanks to the generous sponsorship of travel entrepreneur (and publisher of StMaartenNews.com) Terrance Rey. “I told her and the way she screamed I think Marigot heard her,” Eliane’s mother Christ’l Larmonie wrote in a message to Rey after he had informed her about what he is ready to do for this venture.
Eliane Berwers dances at the INDISU Dance Theater in St. Maarten where she takes ballet, jazz ballet and modern classes. In the past she studied fusion, hip hop and tap classes. Currently she also works as a dance instructor’s assistant to help younger kids at INDISU.
She auditioned for the summer intensive program at the Dance Theater of Harlem and was accepted. “I am really excited and I would love to go,” she wrote in an introduction to her Gofundme-campaign. However, the fee for taking part in the program is $4,200 and that was obviously a serious stumbling block for the teenager.
Therefore, she created her own Gofundme-campaign with the goal of raising at least $4,000.
At the time this article was written, the score was $3,920 – an excellent indication that the local community supports her efforts with great enthusiasm.
Click here to visit this Gofundme-page>>>
Things even got better when local entrepreneur Terrance Rey spotted the Gofundme-campaign. He approached Eliane’s mother and informed her that he would cover the cost of the airline ticket to New York via his AirStMaarten travel companies. That is not all: Rey also offered the use of his VIP Airport Transfers-service: “That way you don’t have to stress about driving her to the airport.”
Rey promised that on the day of her departure a photographer would be present at the airport to see Eliane off.
When the time came to leave on July 1, a day after her fifteenth birthday, a VIP-agent escorted the young dancing queen to the boarding gate, thus avoiding the hassle of the security checkpoints at the airport.
While the Dance Theater of Harlem program tuition for classes including in-house residency amounts to $4,200, the entire trip costs entailing travel, meals (which are not included), insurance, dance wear, accommodations before enrollment, etc.) is much more for someone who has travel from abroad to attend the program, Eliane’s mother explained to Rey.
Then Rey added the cherry to the cake: “Whatever she comes up short in her budget I can cover. Just let me know.”
Eliane’s mother initially took some time to react to this generous offer: “Please don’t misunderstand my silence for anything else but being overwhelmed with gratitude and letting it sink in,” she wrote to Rey.
Eliane also received a generous offer from the Sint Maarten Lions Club for which she is very grateful, her mother said.
For Eliane the trip to New York has in the meantime begun and she is not going there for a holiday: “I love to dance. It is my passion and I want to pursue it as my career,” she wrote on her Gofundme-page. “For an island girl like me this is big and I am so grateful for having been accepted and to anyone willing to support me. Dance is my future.”
On the way to the airport in St. Maarten Eliane said to her mom: “I can’t believe I’m going, I mean I knew I was going to the Dance Theater of Harlem, but I only now know that I’m really actually going!”
In New York, Eliane’s mother reported back to Rey: “When we landed, Eliane screamed: ‘We’re here!!!'”
Eliane promised to send pictures at the dance school when she starts the dance program on Tuesday.
Photo caption: Eliane seen here in NYC entering her dorm room with four individual suites; one for each dancer.
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