Charlie’s stage fun

There’s no business like show business and six-year-old Busselton dancer Charlie Deroost can attest to that.

He has just returned from filming an episode of Ready Set Dance, the hit Nickelodeon Jr. television show.

The young performer’s episode will air in season two, where nine children, from ages four to 12, danced to a sports theme.

As Charlie’s chaperone, his mother, Donna Deroost, was flown from Perth to Sydney for the whirlwind production and was allowed backstage to watch the filming and prepping.

Charlie regularly attends Ready Set Dance lessons at the Jazz Attack Gymnastics & Performing Arts Studio in Busselton every Saturday.

The lessons are a one-hour combo of jazz, tap, hip-hop, singing and music helping to foster kids’ love of performing while enhancing the three cornerstone elements of drama, confidence, co-ordination and creativity.

Charlie said his favourite dance style was hip-hop and the experience was “really fun”.

His mum was impressed by the crew’s professionalism: “It was brilliant, I felt like a stage mum and I’m so proud of him. He looked right into the camera and co-operated well with the director.”

Jazz Attack director Tara Howson said Charlie was selected from thousands of applications across Australia after the studio recorded an audition video and submitted it to Nickeledeon Jr.

“The kids love Ready Set Dance because it gets them active and the teachers are really happy and super energetic and it’s just amazing to see Charlie get selected.”

Look out Broadway Charlie is on his way.