Imagine training hard and landing two fantastic opportunities, only to find out that both events have been scheduled for April 2020.

Such is the case with eleven-year-old ballet starlet Claudia Santamaria, who found herself having to choose between two big dreams: the prestigious Youth American Grand Prix finals and the role of Matilda in local theatre company Masquerade’s musical.

Claudia rose to prominence last year as the first Maltese ballerina to qualify for the finals of the Youth America Prix. Assisted by the Malta Arts Council and the Young Talent Fund, and mentored by Brigitte Gauci Borda, Claudia reveals that competing in the Paris semi-finals against some of Europe’s best young ballerinas, and then being selected as a finalist, was simply incredible: “I nearly fainted when my mom told me!” the young dancer says, adding that both her parents had a very similar reaction when they first found out.

On a regular week, Claudia trains for six out of seven days: syllabus work on Mondays and Wednesdays, private lessons on Tuesdays and Thursdays, pointe work on Fridays and three hours of Scholars and Stretch and Core on Saturdays, but she upped her training during the summer leading up to the American Youth Grand Prix semi-finals, with the young dancer practising for around three hours a day.

The intensity does not seem to faze the young dancer: “Many people say to me it has to be very hard but, honestly? I don’t find it hard at all. I mean, it is a bit tiring sometimes, but it just feels so good,” she says.

During the same time, Claudia had also auditioned for the role of Matilda: “I didn’t think I was going to get through to the second audition, but surprisingly, I did!” she admits. After four rounds, she was chosen as one of four to take up the role. “I really didn’t think they’d pick me!” she fawns, adding that Matilda was her favourite character from one of her favourite books written by her favourite author.

Her excitement soon turned into dismay though, as the sad realisation hit: both events were scheduled in the same week, and taking both on would be impossible: rehearsals would overlap and there was also the geographical issue of one being halfway across the world in New York City and the other in Malta.

“I had to choose and let go of one dream,” the young ballerina explains. Ultimately, the choice fell on the musical Matilda: “I am 11 and this is the only chance I will ever have to play Matilda while the American Youth Grand Prix is held every year,” she says. Despite the joy that comes with such a big role, there is also a degree of heartbreak: “You cannot imagine how hard it was to say no to the New York finals after all the work it took to get there,” she says.

Being on stage and dancing ballet is her forever love, and becoming a principal dancer (of the likes of Marianella Nunez) with the Royal Ballet her ultimate dream: “Ballet, for me, beats all other dance genres, and I cannot really explain why. It’s just a feeling,” she says.  My mother says it is good not to be able to explain feelings with words because that means they come from deep in the soul. Some feelings, she says, can only be explained through music, painting or dance. 

The young ballerina’s journey in international dance competitions is far from over and she confirms that she’ll be vying for a place in next year's finals: “now that I know I can do it, I feel more determined than ever!” she says. There’s also another surprise in store: “next year I will fly en pointe,” she says, referring to the slippers ballerinas wear to dance on their toes.

Finals or not, one thing is certain: there's a bright future ahead for this talented and hard-working dancer, and we can't wait to see her perform on stage as Matilda, and who knows... maybe one day as Giselle?

Break a leg Claudia!