Marjorie Wise School of Dance

A history of the school… Marjorie Eileen Wise – a Christmas Day baby! As with lots of little girls, Marjorie Wise wanted to go to ballet lessons, and her parents, Harry & Grace decided at age 6, she could go to Leicester ballet teacher, Queenie Green and enjoy a few ballet lessons. Marjorie’s parents were unaware of the talent that their daughter had! Marjorie enjoyed her ballet lessons and took her Royal Academy of Dancing (RAD) exams one by one until by the age of 17, she had passed her Advanced Exam and had begun to achieve the relevant teaching qualifications to be able to teach RAD ballet and enter children for exams. Just before her 18th birthday, she decided to open her own school and thus Marjorie Wise School of Dancing (MWSD) was born. Harry & Grace Wise were keen to assist their daughter with this venture and moved from the family home in Aylestone to a house on Saxby Street, Leicester, because it had a dance studio in the basement. This was converted into a ballet studio with bespoke mirrors, barres and floor. Marjorie Wise became a household name in Leicester and the school thrived. Marjorie herself continued with her own ballet study and soon expanded into International Dance Teacher’s Association (IDTA) tap and theatre craft study. Marjorie travelled weekly to be taught by Sissie Smith in Nottingham and furthered her knowledge of ballet. Soon, Saxby Street was too small for the expanding school and Marjorie started hiring local halls to teach in. Her cousin, an excellent pianist, accompanied the classes on the piano and her parents dealt with the admin of running the school. In the 1960’s, a young girl called Yvonne Saunders, joined the school for her lessons, as she wanted a classical RAD ballet school for her training. Yvonne was a very talented dancer and Marjorie quickly recognised an outstanding talent in this pupil. She was not wrong, as Yvonne went on to be the lead dancer with the Royal Ballet, partnering the likes of Rudolf Nureyev and dancing solos with the Company all over the world. Yvonne continued to keep in touch with Marjorie on a regular basis.