Education Matters: For the Love of Dance

The Sarasota Ballet’s Education Department

By Ryan G. Van Cleave | May 2021

Like so many businesses and organizations, COVID-19 forced The Sarasota Ballet’s Education Department’s efforts to pause its face-to-face classes in early 2020. But with the resilience that a top arts organization has, they found a way to deliver quality dance training through virtual education platforms. Everything from classes for their acclaimed Sarasota Ballet School and Margaret Barbieri Conservatory to Dance—the Next Generation lessons were available for people from the safety and comfort of their own homes. 

As a way of both saying thank you and supporting the local community, they didn’t charge families tuition for classes through the summer of 2020. 

But dance is best taught live, so The Sarasota Ballet created a hybrid situation last year for their International Intensive summer program. Mornings were small-group face-to-face classes that had very strict health and safety protocols—including masks—and afternoons were online via Zoom. This arrangement worked so well and kept people dancing that by September 2020, they were able to offer even more face-to-face classes, while still keeping virtual options open for those who chose that method.

The majority of students are now physically back in the studio, reports Christopher Hird, Education Director, and he couldn’t be more excited about it. “Ballet is such a beautiful art form,” he says. “It’s excellent exercise, for one thing. But it’s also a way to express yourself without using words, and there are so many children who feel uncomfortable expressing themselves in their day-to-day lives. Yet through movement, something is unlocked within them. Through ballet, they are freed.”

Like all of the teachers they employ, Hird is certified through the American Ballet Theatre®’s National Training Curriculum. He explains, “We strongly believe in professional development for our teachers so they can deliver the best possible training and opportunities for our students.”

Hird also oversees and maintains their robust community partnerships to ensure they’re delivering what’s needed, even during COVID-19. “For example, we do a Silver Swans program at Plymouth Harbor and Senior Friendship Centers—this helps keep our elderly population going strong. We also have continued our Joyful Movement Through Parkinson’s program going virtually in collaboration with the Neuro Challenge Foundation.”

Like so many others at the Sarasota Ballet—Director Iain Webb and Assistant Director Margaret Barbieri to name 

just two—Hird studied at The Royal Ballet School in London before joining a dance company as a performer. And like those others, when he retired from the stage, he wanted to stay involved in the ballet world. 

“I hope to inspire the next generation of dance lovers,” he says, “and my goal is to bring the world of ballet out into the community. Plus, it’s just so rewarding to see a student achieve a particular step that they’ve been working on for weeks.” 

One of the most exciting programs The Sarasota Ballet offers is Dance—The Next Generation, which is celebrating its 30^th anniversary, the same as the company this year. Over those 30 years, they’ve reached so many students who would never normally even have been introduced to ballet, because the program offers those who are most at-risk for dropping out of school the opportunity to participate in a 10-year, full-scholarship program in dance. The goal isn’t prepping them for a career in dance, but rather to build on core aspects of the training that help them in life, such as self-discipline and self-esteem, as well as overall fitness and health.

DNG averages about 160 students at any one time, ranging from third to twelfth grade. And for those who complete the program and graduate from high school, there’s an additional scholarship opportunity to State College of Florida or USF Sarasota-Manatee. Hird says, “I hear again and again from our DNG graduates that the program got them to understand the value of striving toward something. Without that, they wouldn’t be a college graduate or in a specific profession. DNG is really a huge success story.”

Another success story is how The Margaret Barbieri Conservatory Trainee program—which is the top level offered—doubled in size last year, despite COVID-19. Why is that the case? Hird thinks it’s due to the growing reputation of the company which makes students from around the country want to come and train here. He also thinks that being one of the only American ballet schools in the area to offer the American Ballet Theatre®’s National Training Curriculum is a draw for people.

Graduates from the Trainee Program are sometimes invited to join The Sarasota Ballet Studio Company, which is the first step toward a professional ballet career. For many, though, dance isn’t a career goal but instead is a beloved activity that enriches their lives. Those are the people who are the dance audiences of the future, which is a vital part of keeping the art form alive. 

In early March, the Studio Company and trainees performed the first of a series of Terrace Programs on the outdoor stage constructed by the Asolo Repertory Theatre in front of the FSU Center for the Performing Arts. “We were thrilled that the dancers got to perform on a real stage after such a challenging year,” says Hird. “We actually had to add an extra performance due to demand.” 

Terrace Program 2, Voices of Her is scheduled through May 1, though seating is limited to keep audience members appropriately socially distant while they enjoy ballets created and choreographed by the women of The Sarasota Ballet and the Studio Company. Terrace Program 3, Images of Dance will be from May 7-9 and will feature the entire Margaret Barbieri Conservatory.

“A kid walks into the studio for the first time. Their eyes go wide and they discover their love for ballet. That’s how it starts,” Hird says about the world of dance that he loves so much. “The future of The Sarasota Ballet’s Education Programs is bright.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION about the Sarasota Ballet’s Education Department, and to book tickets for the Terrace Programs please visit www.sarasotaballet.org or call 941.359.0099.