Meet the barefoot ballerinas

With pink tutus and a unique red dirt stage, these little girls from the outback are taking the world by storm

- Phillip Koch

The look of joy and happiness on this troupe of 22 tiny ballerinas from remote Australia lit up the internet even before the “barefoot ballerinas” took to the stage for their end-of-school concert at Cape York.

It was the first big public performance from these little girls who have been studying ballet through online lessons, thanks to the dedication and love of their tiny community of Hope Vale in the striking red dirt of far north Queensland.

“I’m one proud mum, but then I’m proud of all the girls,” beams Shiniquia Morris, whose six-year-old daughter Hazel Port dances with the troupe.

“There was nothing up here for dance and they only started at the beginning of the year. The girls did a fantastic job when they performed. It’s really helped build their confidence to perform on stage in front of the entire community. It was really, really good to see.”

Shiniquia, 27, got the chance to take Hazel to the “big smoke” earlier in the year when she was selected as one of six finalists in the Suncorp Dream Big Challenge – and got to participate in a ballet lesson with the Queensland Ballet company in Brisbane.