Watch the surreal moment Dubbo ballet school wins choreography trophy

The seven dancers of Dubbo Ballet Studio channelled an other-worldly grace during their award-winning choreography, titled 'Disposition', which they created for the Short Sharp Dance competition.

"[Dancing is] a freeing way to move the body while also keeping it fit - it's almost meditative at times," Spencer, 16, told the Daily Liberal.

He and his sister, Estelle, 15, were joined by five other Dubbo dancers to create the piece for the competition.

Hosted by Form Dance Projects, the contest judges students from western Sydney and western NSW on their creativity and choreographic merits.

Estelle said: "When I'm dancing with something I've created on my own, I feel very loose and free with what I can do, because there's no rule book and I can just be me."

The piece was put together in a matter of months and began with a brainstorming session.

"We first started with the concept of mania in the day-to-day world and then we just adapted it to just fit how our bodies worked with the help of all the others," Estelle said.

"It ended up being about the meaning of creative movement and moving as a team and creating as a team, rather than having a set theme."

The troupe, which included Jazmyn Haksteeg, Calliope Hurford, Kate Armour, Laura Wilcher and Caitlin McCarthy, rehearsed for about two hours per week then added more hours as it got closer to the competition.

Their piece won Best Ensemble Choreography in the 2023 Open's Own Choreography category, after performing in October 2023.

Spencer said winning the title was "good validation" for the teenagers, who were aged 15 to 17.

"It was good validation that what we were doing was right, even though we don't have the same privileges that a dancer in the city might have," he said.

"It was good encouragement to continue."

Anna Bloomfield, principal of the studio and mum of Estelle and Spencer, said Dubbo Ballet Studio is celebrating its 90th year in 2024.

"We're going from strength to strength and even though we've been around 90 years, we're still trying to innovate," Mrs Bloomfield said.

"The biggest thing for me is to continue to provide opportunities for regional kids so that they don't feel like they're not getting those opportunities or that they are less.

"It's about trying to give them the same kind of launching platform to be competitive in the industry."