The Duchess of Cornwall visited one of her favourite patronages on Wednesday. She spent the afternoon at the Royal Academy of Dance to mark the opening of their new headquarters in Battersea.
Chief Executive Luke Rittner and President Dame Darcey Bussell accompanied Camilla throughout the day. She was made Vice-Patron of the RAD in 2020; The Queen has served as Patron of the RAD since 1953.
The new RAD facilities include seven separate studios, fully accessible archives, and a brand-new 193-seat theatre for performances.
The Duchess watched several different children’s classes and performances, including a new programme RADiate for children with additional needs.
The RADiate programme “provides subsidised inclusive dance classes with specialised Dance Artists, to children with additional learning needs. The project works with children and young people on the autism spectrum, those with behavioural, emotional or social difficulties, and those with learning difficulties. This includes children with PMLD, with medical conditions and those who are non-verbal.”
The Duchess of Cornwall then watched a Silver Swans class and took part herself. The Silver Swans programme was developed for older dancers for any level of Dance experience and helps with mobility, posture, and energy levels. At a virtual engagement celebrating International Dance Day in April 2020, Camilla revealed that she had been taking Silver Swans classes herself for 18 months after seeing the programme at an earlier engagement. And while the Duchess took part in the class in person, a Silver Swans class from Australia also videocalled in to take part.
She was also able to visit the RAD Archives and see several important pieces. She was shown the RAD’s original royal charter from 1936, as well as founder Adeline Genée’s satin ballet flats. The archives hold over 75,000 items, including costumes, programmers, letters, and more.
The Duchess released a statement on the RAD website:
“As the very proud Vice-Patron of the RAD, I would like to congratulate everybody who has made this wonderful new building possible. Having had a very short tour of it, seeing its complete magnificence, it’s just doing so much for so many young people – and old people like me. As a Silver Swan myself, I was inspired by my first visit here to try it out and I have been doing it ever since.”
