Sick eight-year-old girl's Christmas wish granted with backstage ballet visit
Ballet fan Bella-Rose, from Basildon in Essex, was taken on a backstage tour of the theatre with ballerina Tara-Brigitte Bhavnani
An eight-year-old girl who has spent more than 100 days in hospital this year saw her Christmas wish come true with a backstage visit to the Royal Opera House.
Ballet fan Bella-Rose, from Basildon in Essex, was taken on a backstage tour of the theatre with ballerina Tara-Brigitte Bhavnani on Tuesday.
Bella-Rose was born at 24 weeks with two holes in her heart, issues with her stomach and bowel and has been through two brain bleeds, leading her to spend much of her life in Great Ormond Street Hospital.
She also has autism, cerebral palsy, meaning she has difficulty walking, and is tube-fed.
Bhavnani, 42, who has performed with the Royal Ballet for 20 years and teaches ballet, took the eight-year-old to watch dancers rehearsing.
The pair also went to the shoe room where Bella-Rose was given her own ballet slippers, and to the dressing room where she had make-up put on and saw costumes from the Royal Ballet's production of The Nutcracker.
Bella-Rose said: "I really loved being on the stage and seeing all the props and looking out at the seats where the people would sit.
"Tara showed me all the dresses and skirts and gave me shoes of my own so I felt like a mini ballerina like Tara!"
Bella-Rose's mother Lisa, 44, said: "Bella-Rose walked on tiptoes because of her cerebral palsy until she had an operation recently and so we always said she was like a ballerina.
"When she met Tara last year, they instantly bonded and her dream of being a dancer came to life. Tara taught her how to twirl and danced with her to Perfect by Ed Sheeran which is Bella-Rose's favourite song.
"It meant the world to see her dancing with her face lit up with a smile."
She added: "The tour of the Royal Opera House was out of this world and completely exceeded our expectations.
"It was our first day out since Bella has been in hospital and the perfect Christmas treat."
Bhavnani, who dances for children at Great Ormond Street Hospital as part of a charity-funded arts programme, said doing so is a "privilege".
She added: "There are challenges to dancing in a hospital environment, but seeing the joy on the children's faces and being able to adapt my dance choreography to what they want is so special. I am constantly in awe of their resilience.
"Bella-Rose is a lovely girl with such a passion for dance and so it was an honour to make her Christmas wish come true and show her the magic of the ballet world."