Miss Leigh’s wish to teach dance started when she was very small. She said to her mother whilst watching television;
“I want to dance like the lady in the sticky out dress”
Miss Leigh enrolled in classes with dance teacher Julia Chittenden in Southampton and, following her graduation performance of The Firebird, Miss Leigh continued her training at the reputable Bush Davis School of Theatre Arts. She completed her training at Laine Theatre Arts.
Miss Leigh was a beautiful dancer who gained top marks in all her dancing exams, but she knew she always wanted to teach.
Leigh and her Mum, Tess, both adored the film Rebecca which contains the line, “Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again”. Tess said, “when you have your own Ballet school, you should use Manderley but change the spelling to your name”. And so, The Mandaleigh School of Dancing was born.
Leigh bought the very small school in Blackbrook Road and opened Mandaleigh in 1978. Student numbers quickly grew and there were classes running at Blackbrook Road, The Women’s Institute in Oak Road, in Lee on Solent as well as at the studio created at home.
Miss Leigh was fortunate enough to be awarded a bursary by the Gordon Edwards Charitable Trust to train with the Danish Ballet Company in Copenhagen in 1988, something she was very proud of.
Miss Leigh also became an Imperial Ballet examiner for the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing, examining in the UK and overseas. At one time, she was the ISTD’s youngest examiner. So many students and teachers commented on how fair and kind she was to all students she examined. She just wanted to bring out the best in everyone.
Miss Leigh saw Mandaleigh go through some tough times with recessions and such, but she always pushed through and kept the school going.
Over the years, Miss Leigh has had pupils progress on to prestigious dance colleges such as Laines, Arts Ed, Rambert, Laban, The Royal Ballet School and The Brighton Academy.
Mandaleigh grew and in 2015 moved into its own premises in Fareham town centre, something Miss Leigh was hugely proud of.
In 2016, The Mandaleigh Studios became a registered charity, ensuring every child or adult who wanted to dance had the opportunity.
In 2023, Mandaleigh moved “across the road” into the premises we know of today which boasts 3 studios and is an excellent asset to the local community.
Miss Leigh has always run Mandaleigh as a school where everyone is welcome. She taught deaf children, those with loss of limb, children with special needs – she was once quoted as saying, “if you have one leg and you can hop, you can dance”. Whether her students wished to further their dancing professionally or just dance for fun, she invested the same amount of time, care and love to them all.
Miss Ali and the Mandaleigh staff will run Mandaleigh in the same way, continuing the legacy Miss Leigh started and worked so hard to maintain.
Our studios are based on West Street, in the heart of Fareham. You can sign up for an initial taster period and just pay weekly whilst you try our dance classes.