Principal role for town's dancing queen Cordelia

Cordelia Braithwaite appears in the Matthew Bourne show when it visits Milton Keynes Theatre at the end of the month.

She said: “Princess Aurora is a little bit of a wild child. She is obviously the king and the queen’s daughter and there are expectations around her. She’s not really an average girl.

“I think that the movement that Matthew Bourne creates speaks for itself. But it not just a dance part. There is a lot of acting in this show.

“It is the first time I have been in a principal part which at the age of 22 is absolutely overwhelming.

“There is a lot to learn but I have always wanted to be part of this company ever since I saw Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake at Milton Keynes Theatre.”

However, it is safe to say that she never believed she would be here having previously been at the Leanne Hughes Theatre School from the age of seven to 15.

Cordelia added: “There is no way I thought I would be in this position. My mum sees me dancing and I don’t think she can quite believe the position that we are in.

“I went to a dance school in Leighton Buzzard and my mum will be dropping off for the performances. Normally when we are on tour, you have to find your own accommodation.

“It will be like nothing has changed from when I used to go to dance school and she would drop me off then.

“I didn’t want to be a dancer, I originally wanted to be a teacher, but it was when I was at dance school that my teacher said she thought I could go further and it went from there.”

Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty can be seen from Tuesday, January 26, to Saturday, January 30. For tickets call the box office on 0844 871 7652 or visit www.atgtickets.co.uk/miltonkeynes.