A touch of 21st Century class

It has been set up by two women who met as teenagers at a Brighton dance class more than 15 years ago.

One, Melanie Bloor-Black, went on to become a successful actress and director with her own theatre company and nationally-renowned drama school.

The other, Julie Bitout, ended up as a lead dancer at the world-famous Moulin Rouge, kicking up a storm in feathered headdresses, sequinned bodices and opulent jewels.

Now the two have reunited as business partners. Their Academy du Savoir-Faire will encourage girls and women to develop poise, grace and a confident attitude.

Pupils will not only benefit from the pair's combined expertise in public speaking, catwalk charm and elegant self-assurance; they will learn practical skills from the secrets of good skincare to how to do a French manicure.

Julie, 36, first auditioned for the Moulin Rouge when she was 21. The dancer, from Rottingdean, had toured Europe with a Spanish troupe and fallen in love with a stuntman from the show who happened to be French.

She said: "We decided to find somewhere we could be together and that's how we ended up in Paris. In a way, I suppose I ended up dancing in the Moulin Rouge for love."

For the next few years, the dancer high-kicked her way through hundreds of performances of the club's precedent-smashing centenary show.

When she first started, LaToya Jackson was playing the lead part.

It was something Julie dreamed of doing herself. In a show with up to 60 female dancers, all among the best in the world, making it as lead dancer is a rare achievement.

She said: "It was very different to anything I had done before. It's such a huge place and a huge production.

"You dance in these incredibly lavish costumes with really heavy headdresses and great big high heels. Apart from anything else, we had to get the balancing right before we even took a dance step."

Julie is coy about the topless side of the club's spectacular productions, "That's not what it was about. It's a tradition, and that's really the only reason why it's there. The whole thing is so glamorous it's not an issue at all."

She also dismissed a few common myths about the infamous Parisian club. Magazine articles often claim the girls are weighed every week and told to lose any stray pounds, or even ounces, they may have put on.

Julie said this was totally untrue but admitted every girl had to watch her weight like a hawk.

She said: "We were never weighed there. But it was harsh when the captains would say 'Your make-up isn't good enough tonight,' or 'You're not looking trim enough today'.

"Every year, you are asked to go to the office to talk about renewing your contract. If it hasn't been renewed, more often than not it's because you've put on weight.

"You agree to look the same as you did on the day they took you on. That's part of your contract, so if you don't stick to it, they won't keep you on."

This never mattered to Julie, who always managed to keep her slender frame trim through the discipline of dancing night after night.

It only became an issue when she discovered she was pregnant with her first child, Keeley, who is now eight.

For the first five months of her pregnancy, Julie flung herself around the stage night after night just like she had for every other performance.

She said: "It was hard work dancing while I was pregnant. I told them about it after six weeks because at the time I was a soloist and as a soloist you get thrown about quite a bit.

"I went back into the chorus but it was still hard because I was feeling very poorly. I was never actually sick on stage but by the last two weeks I was feeling exhausted."

After two years of being a full-time mum, Julie went back on stage.

She was back in shape and had never danced better and within months she had taken the lead role.

She said: "I wasn't going to go back but then I got the chance to play the lead. It was a dream come true for me but it was a challenge. You have to be the best you can be every night and keeping that up is hard.

"It wasn't so much of a challenge juggling being a mum with being a glamorous dancer. By that time, it was almost just a job.

"I would put on my make-up, go on stage, do my job, take off my make-up and go home to being a mum."

Now Julie had got to the top, she felt it was time to leave on a high. "I said to myself, 'Okay, I've gone as far as I can go, now it's time to retire gracefully.' It was a case of 'thank you and good night'."

Together with her former stuntman husband, Julie moved back to Rottingdean and began adjusting to life away from the stage.

At first she found it hard. She missed all the friends she had made, the backstage banter and the thrill of performing.

But now she had Keeley, the former model was relieved to be back near her family - and her friend Melanie, who was still in Brighton.

Melanie's favourite story about Julie involves a millionaire who offered her anything she wanted in the world.

For Melanie, the story sums up her friend's love of her family and the way she managed to keep her feet on the ground no matter how many high-kicks she did.

The drama teacher said: "This man asked her what she wanted most in the world and she asked him to fly her mother over for a visit.

"Silly girl! I would have asked for gems, then sold them, used some of the money to fly over my mum and kept the rest for myself."

It is this mixture of the pragmatic and the glamorous which makes the pair so sure their modern finishing school will be a success. Melanie's common sense, self-confidence and superb teaching skills make the ideal foil to Julie's natural grace, make-up skills and catwalk expertise.

Melanie has run The Academy, a Brighton-based drama school for children and teenagers, for the last six years.

The former actress, who lives in Freshfield Road, has helped her pupils get some of the best GCSE drama results in the country. She is now teaching drama in Rottingdean.

Melanie believes there is a real need for the six-week masterclasses and intensive sessions she and Julie will be teaching.

She thinks teenage girls often experiment with make-up and clothes without giving much thought to their emotional development.

As far as she is concerned, the key to success and happiness is confidence. Without that, it doesn't matter if you know what the latest fashions are.

She said: "It is so important to present yourself well, whether it's for an interview or walking into a party. Some girls walk around like they are apologising for being there.

"Our minimum age will be 14, because we wanted to reintroduce that idea of a gateway time between childhood and adulthood. This is a great time for girls to think about realising their potential as individuals.

"The class will also be useful for mothers and other ladies who are returning to a career after a few years' break.

Perhaps they no longer know what kind of make-up suits them or want advice on skincare routines. Perhaps they are feeling unconfident and need to develop techniques for improving their self-esteem."

Melanie, whose own daughter, Eloise, has just turned one, believes passionately in the importance of individuals striving to achieve their best.

To reach that aim, pupils of the Academie du Savoir Faire will get a personalised programme with recommendations for eye and lip palettes, nail and skin care.

At every session, they will learn about a different aspect of personal grooming as well as participating in Melanie's motivational sessions.

They may try modelling, balance a book on their heads in a bid to improve their posture, or role-play an interview for a new job or university place.

Each pupil will also receive 20 per cent off cosmetics at the Virgin cosmetics store in Churchill Square, where Julie is now assistant manager.

Melanie believes every woman could benefit from their masterclass.

She said: "In the past, finishing schools were for privileged women who wanted to bag a man. This is nothing to do with finding a man. It's about finding yourself and feeling beautiful inside and out."

Six-week courses at the Academie du Saviour-Faire, based in Hove Town Hall, will cost £120. For more information, call 01273 676932.