December 8, 2006
Beausejour Review
Ryan Crocker
For this region’s young girls and boys, women and men, the beauty of ballet is going to be a lot closer than Winnipeg this year.
The Royal Winnipeg Ballet School’s satellite program, sponsored by Manitoba Hydro, is coming to the Beausejour Early Years School, offering interested residents the chance to learn from the province’s best.
Kelly Bale, principal of the school’s recreational division, said ballet is an art that can provide benefits for everyone, regardless of their age or how much time they’re willing to invest.
“Ballet has a long, long history in discipline and the art of creating an aesthetic line. The benefits, the physical benefits, are great – strength, agility, balance, musicality and coordination are great benefits for students of any age,” Bale explained.
“Basically it’s an art, not a sport – meaning we really instill the artistic element of the discipline in our students. It provides them with an emotional positivity in their own personality and gives them the confidence to pursue other performance aspects.”
Bale said youth are drawn to ballet for different reasons, often the same reasons adults decide to give the art form a go.
“Particularly for the girls, seeing dancers dancing on point, meaning in shoes that allow them to dance right on the tip of their toes, is very exciting,” Bale said.
“For the gentlemen, the agility and strength that’s required to lift the girls and execute the large jumps is also appealing.”
Bale said the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School believes ballet should be accessible for everyone, whether they live in the capital city or not. That’s why the school and Manitoba Hydro provide the satellite programs, to share their talents with those in rural areas and help rural Manitobans develop their gifts and talents.
Daphne Schmidt is in charge of registration for the classes to be held at the Beausejour Early Years School (BEYS) and she has a daughter who can’t wait to start ballet instruction.
“My daughter is interested in ballet and there were no ballet classes offered here, and I was aware of the satellite program so I contacted Kelly Bale,” Schmidt explained.
“They have been helping us and they've found a teacher, Amanda Joy, and she will be coming on Fridays to the BEYS gym.”
Schmidt also touted the benefits of ballet, especially the exercise it provides participants and the positive effects it can have on the self-esteem of youth.
The classes will be held from Jan. 12 to May 11 and include creative movement, pre-ballet, ballet, and adult ballet at various times during Friday evenings. Creative movement, for example, runs for 45 minutes beginning at 4 p.m. and is for the youngest kids, 4-5 years old. Adult ballet, the last class of the evening, runs for an hour beginning at 6:15 p.m.
Registration for the program will be held at the Sun Gro Centre on Dec. 12, from 4 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. If you’re not able to make it to the registration, but still want to participate – or if you just want more information – give Schmidt a call at 268-2746.
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