A YOUNG Wangaratta girl has become a cover girl for online dance magazine Dance Informa Australia, after impressing at this year's Victorian Dance Festival.

Thirteen-year-old Milla Hall, a member of Wangaratta's Pulsate Dance Force, features in a cover image created by one of Australia's leading dance photographers, Leah Hoffman from Hoffa Studios Photography.

Her image is now going Australia-wide, and also reaching audiences via social media for Dance Informa's UK and US publications.

Photographer Leah Hoffman, who specialises in fine art dance portraits, is based in Melbourne where the annual Victorian Dance Festival (VDF) is held.

Leah's shots were used on special edition Dance Informa VDF24 covers which were gifted to dancers at the 2024 festival in April.

VDF attracts up to 6000 dancers and dance enthusiasts from across Australia, and hundreds took part in this free photography competition, as organisers went in search of the next Dance Informa Australian Edition cover star.

Milla's breathtaking fire bird jump stood out among the images Leah had captured during the festival weekend, and earned her the prize of a professional portrait session with Hoffa Studios to create the cover for the August/September 2024 edition of the online Dance Informa magazine; the image depicts the transition from winter to spring.

With the magazine's covers usually featuring stars of Australian dance and ballet companies, Milla's cover was a coup for a young dancer from regional Victoria.

"I couldn't believe it when they told me I was selected, and was sort of scared to get too excited in case it wasn't real," Milla said.

"Then, after the photo shoot with Leah, it started to become more real, but it was still such a shock to see myself on the cover when it was released.

"It was really cool."

Milla, who enjoyed her third year at VDF in 2024, said the professional hair and make-up session and the photo shoot were "heaps of fun".

In an article featured in the new edition of the magazine, Milla said she loves any opportunity to perform on-stage and do what she loves.

"I hope to get into dancing full-time and continue to grow as a dancer. I want to seize every opportunity," she said.

Established in 2007, Dance Informa has a large Australian circulation, along with a growing readership in the US and abroad.

To find out more about the magazine, and to view Leah's cover image featuring Milla, visit https://dancemagazine.com.au/

The next Victorian Dance Festival will be held from May 23 to 25, 2025 at the Melbourne Showgrounds, with tickets set to go on sale soon.