In London, two female dancers open the first ballet school for Muslim kids

In London, the first ballet school for Muslim kids has opened earlier this year, welcoming Muslim girls who dream of becoming ballerinas.

The school is the first of its kind, according to Metro, as it «offers a unique poetry syllabus instead of music to be more inclusive as some followers of the Islamic faith don’t listen to music».

Opened by British dancer Maisie Alexandra Byers and Sajedah Shubib, Grace and Poise Academy was created to tackle the fact that the «ballet world is woefully lacking minority dancers», especially Muslims.

«We are a school that aims to make ballet accessible to Muslims however we are of course open to all, we do have some non-Muslim students that came to us because they love our unique approach using poetry», the school’s founders told Metro.

«Until now ballet has been inaccessible to many Muslims and Grace and Poise aims to cater to the Community. It also aims to provide a space to celebrate Islamic Identity and support the harmonious connection between mind body and soul», Byers and Shubib explained.

Although it has not hosted performances yet, the school is planning to organize shows with female-only audiences.