I remember well the first time I met Maria. I was 18 and a pupil at The Urdang Academy’, when Maria came in, as a guest, to teach us a couple of Master Classes. I remember how my friends and I were taken completely by surprise when Maria asked us, halfway through our barre exercises, to lay down on the floor (!), where she went on to give us a lot of our remaining enchainments! We had never experienced this before, but I knew there and then that Maria was one of a kind, someone who understood technique and the dancers’ body, better than anyone. A couple of years after I graduated, I suffered a serious injury and was incredibly lucky to have been recommended to Maria, who came to my rescue and nursed me back to the dance floor with the help of her amazing floor barre work. Working with Maria was the biggest privilege, and she soon became a mentor, a friend, a second mother. Having Maria believe in me, invest in me and compliment me on my work, has meant the world. An episode that sums up how well respected and regarded Maria was in the dance world, occurred when I was back home in Portugal. I mentioned to my former ballet teacher that I was working with Maria Fay. She replied: “Not Maria Fay darling..., THE Maria Fay. There is only one like her in the world, so soak up everything she’s got to teach you “. Well, Maria didn’t only teach me about dance, she taught me about life. Maria was one of the most inspirational human beings I’ve ever met, and through her and her life stories, I learned a great deal about resilience, acceptance and living one’s life to the full. Dearest Maria, you will always be very loved and hugely missed. Thank you for everything, Ivania xxx (and much love from Philip and Eleanor) xxx