Spiegelworld’s high-velocity rollerskater has a surprisingly solid artistic foundation…
Photo by Alan Ascencio
In Part One of a two-part series, VEGAS 411 introduces you to a dynamic gentleman and his journey from a small English town to one of the most coveted stages in Sin City…
It’s always exciting to present special citizens in the REAL VEGAS PEOPLE series. What I find most satisfying is the opportunity to learn fascinating details about our subjects…where they came from and the things that make them tick. No story is ever ordinary.
From a mechanic/magician to a singing pilot, a deaf musician to a bartending “Rambo”, each tale is fascinating. Our latest edition visits a leather-clad mountain of muscle named Matt Edmonds. Although he may look like a fierce head-smashing biker, Mr. Edmonds is a mild-mannered gentleman with a staggering list of accomplishments in ballet.
Matthew and his brother grew up in the small town of Totnes in southwest England. His father was a gas engineer and mom was a teaching assistant for troubled and disabled children. The Edmonds also operatated a rugby club. They may have been a simple blue-collar family, but a veritable fireball of talent burst from their household.
Historic Totnes in Devon County is postcard-perfect
Matt proved to be a handful from the very beginning, causing trouble and exhibiting boundless energy as soon as he could walk. His mother enrolled him in ballet classes at age three, hoping to provide a creative outlet while laying down the building blocks of discipline. He took to ballet immediately, finding it both exciting and challenging.
By year five, the young artist had become involved in rugby, alternating between sports and his ballet lessons. As Matt loved pushing his body athletically and artistically, jazz, tap, and gymnastics classes followed.
“You might wonder how there were enough hours in the day for me to be doing so many activities”, Matt told VEGAS 411. “I would finish school at 3:30 pm and until 11 pm I would be in some kind of dance, gymnastics, or sports training.”
Even though Totnes is a “country town” as he describes it, the young student was fortunate to have a ballet school within his secondary school. That allowed him to alternate between traditional and artistic classes, continually improving in academics, performance arts, and athletics.
It can be difficult for Americans to grasp how other nations foster the development of budding artists. By age ten, Matt was attending the Royal Ballet School in London, having already studied at many prestigious academic outlets. He was simultaneously part of professional ballet companies in large-scale productions along with his formal training.
Matt and castmates in 2013
Matt’s accelerated dance career led him to televised competitions, game shows, a music video, and a Royal Caribbean cruise ship contract. He performed for the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall in The Royal Variety Show. Then came a German production of longtime Vegas favorite Starlight Express, for which the rugby-loving ballet star was now appearing with rollerskates.
Working nonstop provided opportunities to visit other countries, dance with celebrities, choreograph numbers, and expand upon his talents. But Matt’s most fateful collaboration to date would be when he auditioned for a pair of shows at Blackpool’s Grand Theater. That’s where he would meet his future wife.
Matt and Valentina
Both shows were presented by BOR Productions with choreography by Valentina Sofia Bor. Miss Bor was assisting in the audition process when the handsome dancer arrived. Matt says that when they met, it was “love at first sight”. He joined the cast and became romantically involved with Valentina. Realizing their destinies were intertwined, Edmonds relocated to London permanently. The couple has remained inseparable ever since.
Steve and Valentina Bor
BOR Productions was founded by Valentina’s parents Kim and Steve Bor. Her father, who serves as Artistic Director for the company, came from a traditional family circus background. He suggested that the couple learn acrobatic rollerskating. Excited by a new challenge, the couple headed to Budapest in 2014 to train with Tibi Komives at the Hungarian State Circus School.
“We skated six days a week with Komives, learning foundational skills necessary for the highly technical act.” Matt told me. “Eight weeks of intensive training that would ultimately provide the base of our future duo act.” And what a success it was!
The “Matt and Valentina Rollerskating Duo” was an instant hit. Their first freestyle gig was in 2015 for a private event in Dubai, followed by the full act in Paris, Munich, Zurich, and Spain. The act became even more polished and intense with time, and the couple was offered contracts in several prestigious productions. They even competed on shows like Germany’s It’s Showtime and Britain’s Got Talent.
The couple was part of the cast for Schubeck’s TEATRO in Germany when Spiegelworld‘s Ross Mollison of ABSINTHE sat in the audience. Later that evening, he approached the couple and uttered two fateful words: Las Vegas!
In Part Two, VEGAS 411 sits down with Matt Edmonds at Spiegelworld’s PIER 17. He tells us what it means to be a part of Sin City entertainment, his life as a Las Vegas resident, and how he and Valentina have become a valued part of the community.
