JAKE Mangakahia has embodied the fighting spirit while helping the Australian Ballet to wrap up their season of Spartacus.
Listed by the Melbourne dance company as one to watch, the 26-year-old former Alexandra Hills State High School student alternated between dancing as Spartacus, Hermes and a gladiator.
But the New Year could bring less adversarial moments and more enchantment for the dancer, who has a proud following back home in the Redlands.
- Read more: Jake wins people's choice
- Read more: Ballet star visits old school
- Read more: Jake's most gruelling dance role
Mangakahia is set to dance in the Australian Ballet’s production of Alice Adventures in Wonderland, which will be performed for Brisbane audiences at QPAC from February 25 to March 2 next year.
Casting has not yet been decided but an Australian Ballet spokesperson confirmed Mangakahia would be in the show.
The whimsical ballet features puppetry and illusions but it is the dancers breathtaking performances that are set to leave the audience gasping.
Mangakahia’s mother Anita Mangakahia said her son strove for artistic excellence and aspired to become a principal dancer.
“He has the absolute passion to never let it go and drives himself towards classical and contemporary,” she said.
Mangakahia has twice won Telstra Ballet People's Choice Award.
He first earned the accolade in 2012, later winning the award in 2017 after taking a two-year sabbatical to serve as a Christian missionary at Toronto for the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day-Saints.
Tickets to see Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland at QPAC’s Lyric Theatre are priced from $51.
To buy tickets online, visit qpac.com.au.
