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:diamond in the rough Adorned in feathers and jewels, Diamond Entertainment are world class showgirls led by one of the best in the business DIAMOND ENTERTAINMENT IS NEW ZEALAND'S leading dance entertainment and promotional talent company specializing in Las Vegas style showgirls dressed in exquisite feathers and jewels, much like those seen in the world's most famous casinos and Paris cabarets. Owned and operated by one of this country's top dance and choreography talents, Emma McLachlan, Diamond Entertainment can create a tailor made show for any requirement including corporate events, conferences, fashion shows, trade shows and product launches. Together with a business partner, Emma first launched Diamond Entertainment in 2006. Four years later she became sole owner of the company and has since led her team to tremendous success. "It was a huge step to take it on by myself but the business has being going up and up ever since," Emma says. "The motivation behind having to make it work meant that I had great success." The trained classical ballerina first took to the dance floor at age four. "I've always had a fascination with cabaret style of dancing. I would watch television commercials for Burgundys Cabaret in Auckland with beautiful girls clad in diamonds and feathers and I wanted to be one of them." Recreational sport held no interest to the performer and after leaving school in her sixth form to pursue schooling in a ballet academy in Auckland, Emma graduated at the age of 18. Her first dance contract saw her travel to India working with other New Zealanders in a five-star-resort. For the next three years she pursued various overseas roles, ending with Princess Cruises. When she returned to New Zealand in 2004, Emma saw an opportunity to start her own business and grow the corporate dance industry in this country. "I'd been offered jobs choreographing for a few dance companies and decided I'd like to get into business for myself. I left the corporate company I was dancing for and took the offers that were presented to me. The business grew from there." With no background in business, Emma relied on her contacts and her 'knack for trusting her gut instinct' to make the business a success. The driven creative admits that the paperwork associated with running a business is not her strong suit. Her younger sister and assistant, Hayley manages this side of the business as well as being the talent booker. "We have a very strong pool of talent and very rarely need to outsource work. My girls always have classical backgrounds. I don't touch girls that don't have that training. The majority of our promotional talent are part time students or women who teach www.hermagazine.co.nz | 111 Diamond Rough in the dancing at dance schools or do choreography." While these days Emma's time is primarily taken up with the managing of her talent, there are key events that she will always dance at like New Year's Eve at Skycity Casino, Christmas at the Park and Lakeside Rotorua. In 2007 and 2008 she produced shows for Lucy Bochier at New Zealand Fashion Week and most recently, Phoenix Renata asked her to be Jem from Jem and the Holograms in her 2012 Fashion Week show. "The group has become so much stronger over the years. At one stage I was the gel that held everybody together but now we have enough great dancers that I am able to step back." "I get to do a little bit of everything. I get to choreograph, I get to dance on stage, I get to make costumes and no one else produces what we have." "The best thing about my job is that I love it. There is nothing else I would rather do. I like all the aspects of it. I love the fantastic group of girls I have to work with and helping them develop. We sew all of our own costumes and this is an absolute passion of mine and I don't mind the amount of time and effort I put into it. If I wasn't doing this I'd be a freelance dancer or a costume designer." Emma's goal is to further develop the corporate and commercial dance industry in New Zealand. "The standards here are not as high as overseas. There isn't a focus on the training of our dancers like there is our ballerinas. I'd like to see a school for corporate dancers in New Zealand. I don't necessarily want to start it myself but I want to make sure when it does happen that I am a part of it. www.diamonddance.co.nz