Josette Q. Salang
Josette started ballet in Manila, Philippines. She later became a company member of the Cultural Center Dance Co. (presently known as Ballet Philippines) while finishing her college degree in Communications. She soon embarked on a professional dance career where she trained under Alice Reyes (for Contemporary), founder of Ballet Philippines; William Morgan (for Classical Ballet); and other choreographer teachers like Norman Walker (Contemporary); Alfred Rodriguez (Classical Ballet); Pauline Koner (Contemporary).
As a member of dance companies like Ballet Philippines, Dance Theatre Philippines and Ballet Federation of the Philippines, Josette was able to perform with the touring repertoire of these companies in the United States, Australia, Europe and South-east Asia. In the Philippines, in 1974, Josette performed in the same production with Dame Margo Fonteyn who was performing then in Romeo & Juliet, Pas De Deux balcony scene. Other roles she has performed include Swanilda, from “Coppellia”, Spring Fairy from “Cinderella”, the Princess from a contemporary dance, “Ang Sultan” (The Sultan), Peasant Pas de Deux a lead Willi from “Gissele”, Grand Pas from “Sleeping Beauty”, as well as with other local and international choreographers working in the Philippines.
Her teaching career began in 1977; she was a teacher/dancer until she gave up performing in 1989 to concentrate on teaching classical ballet.
She taught at the Human Kinetics Department of the University of the Philippines, International School Manila, Cultural Center of the Philippines; and some private ballet schools like the Goldcrest Dance Workshop, Dance Arts Studio, and in Steps Dance Studio, the school she was teaching in before coming to Brunei.