Wendy Mcleod's arms begin moving to the music when Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake starts playing on the radio.
"I can't help myself; it awakens my childhood," she said.
As a child, she enjoyed doing ballet classes until she was deemed too tall to be a ballerina.
Decades later, she has returned to it.
At 78, she is the oldest in her class at Waterloo in Sydney.
"I'm going to dance and sing till the very end," she declared on ABC Radio Sydney.
"Because it's fun and because it's really good for you."
Teacher Rachel Ward tailors the ballet moves to suit her mature-age students in the Silver Swans class.
"I believe anyone can dance at any age, any stage of life and that even applies to ballet," Ms Ward told Mornings presenter Sarah Macdonald.
Ms Ward, a former professional dancer and UNSW researcher on exercise, is investigating the health benefits of ballet.
She leads the dancers, aged in their 50s, 60s and 70s, at the barre in a series of pliés, bends and arm movements.
It is a traditional barre routine, but the moves are slower, and the knees don't bend quite as much.
"It really just targets those things like balance, like strength, and being able to increase coordination and agility," Ms Ward said.
The class is one of 66 that have started in Australia since the over-55s program was launched by the Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) in 2018.
The academy says demand is growing, citing a dance school in Newcastle which runs six classes a week with participants in Silver Swans overtaking the pre-school program.
RAD director of education and training Michelle Groves said dance could bring people together in diverse and unique ways, regardless of age.
"Dance can unlock individual potential and abilities and, as our research shows, improve physical and mental wellbeing," Dr Groves said.
Balance improving
Ms Mcleod knows she needs to keep moving, but she is not a fan of going to the gym or sports.
"I won't be doing marathon running or anything, I'd much rather dance," she said.
She is particularly keen to reduce her risk of "'having a fall' as old people say".
She practises at the kitchen bench between her weekly classes.
"Since coming to the class, I've seen this gradual but very distinctive improvement in my balance," Ms Mcleod said.
Remembering the movements and steps and learning about the language of ballet also has cognitive benefits.
"I like improvising because I've always been a bit of a free spirit, but the discipline of this is fantastic," she said.
"I've got to remember whether to put my foot in the front, you know, your point to the side, front, side or back.
"I've found that I've improved with that."
Ms Mcleod encouraged any older people who liked dancing but were nervous about joining to try a Silver Swans class.
"The fact that you are with other people, and you get more confident the more you do it, so I think do it," she said.
The classes are open to men as well but there are none in the Waterloo class.
"We need some," Ms Mcleod said.
