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Father does ballet on stage alongside daughter after she gets stage fright

The father-of-three joined in after his daughter started to sob uncontrollably 

Chelsea Ritschel
Friday 08 June 2018 16:32 BST
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Father joins his sobbing daughter on stage to finish ballet performance (Caters)
Father joins his sobbing daughter on stage to finish ballet performance (Caters) (© Caters News Agency)

A father-of-three came to his young daughter’s rescue after she suffered stage fright during a ballet performance.

The sweet moment, which was caught on camera, showed Marc Daniels dancing alongside his daughter Bella during a dress rehearsal for her first-ever dance recital at Hamilton City Hall in Bermuda.

Clutching another baby, Suri, to his chest, Daniels held two-year-old Bella’s hand as he expertly twirled alongside her - pirouetting and curtseying as the crowd looked on.

The amusing performance showed off Daniels’ balancing and multi-tasking abilities, as well as his superhero-dad skills.

But, according to Daniels, the rescue - and impressive moves - were just part of being a father to daughters.

“Bella was very emotional and needed hugs from her daddy,” the barrister said of the moment Bella began to sob once she stepped on stage. “Despite having a tantrum, I can tell she wanted to stay on stage and I didn’t want to discourage her before the big performance by making her be the only one to come off.”

At first, Bella’s father just wanted to offer some emotional support to his frightened daughter but when she nodded her approval, he decided to join in.

“I walked on holding Suri and stood next to her, trying to help build her confidence - I told her I loved her and that she’s an amazing dancer,” he said.

Dad joins his daughter on stage to perform ballet after she gets stage fright (Caters) (© Caters News Agency)

“I asked if she wanted to dance with daddy and she nodded, so I thought I’d join in.”

Thankfully, this wasn’t Daniels’ first ballet performance - he’d practised the moves alongside his daughters at home before.

“I’ve practised with them at home on many occasions so it wasn’t unfamiliar to me,” the doting dad said.

Daniels knew the moves from practising with his daughters at home (Caters)

As for the response to his surprising ballet prowess, Daniels’ coworkers and colleagues have wasted no time acknowledging the video.

“Jurors, police officers and members of the prosecution have even been giving me twirls and plies as a token of appreciation for the video,” he revealed. “Even in court the other day, one of the magistrates made a comment about my moves that prompted the court to erupt in laughter.”

And the dad-of-three isn’t opposed to accepting a place at the In Motion School of Dance, where his daughter attends.

“Maybe it’s never too late to become a ballerina!” he said.

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