School and Professional Company
Executive Director: Sandra Meythaler
Artistic Director: Rolando Sarabia
Class Descriptions
Ballet
Beginner Level 1: A thirty-minute class for our 3 – 4 year old students. In a fun and encouraging environment, students explore musicality, rhythm, creativity and movement through space. This class introduces age appropriate stretching, basic strengthening, balance, motor skill development and coordination.
Beginner Level 2: An hour long class for students ages 5 – 6. These classes build on the fundamentals learned in Level 1 classes. This class introduces classical ballet vocabulary, emphasizing musicality and individual creative expression in an innovative, fun and easy to learn manner.
Beginner Level 3: This is an hour long class for students who excelled in Level 2 or for new students who are beginning to take classes at the age of 7-9. Fundamental exercises of ballet are introduced while maintaining an emphasis on musicality, development of overall body strength, alignment and the enjoyment of moving. Students expand their knowledge of ballet terminology at this level.
CYB 1: CYB 1 class enrollment is by invitation only. These students have had at least one year of Beginner Level 3 ballet and are of 8 years of age or older. Students build on their basic understanding of ballet technique. Class focuses on musicality, overall body strength and alignment in a more disciplined setting.
CYB 2: CYB 2 class enrollment is by audition only. This class is for more advanced students who have at least 2-3 years of ballet experience. Students take a traditionally structured ballet class barre and center floor work. More challenging steps are introduced with an emphasis on musicality, body alignment and spatial awareness.
CYB 3: CYB 3 class enrollment is by audition only. These students are advanced, and have at least three years of ballet experience. This class is designed to increase the level of technical proficiency for barre and center floor work. Students learn variations and practice performance presence and technique. A continuing emphasis is placed on musicality, joy of movement, body alignment and overall strengthening.
CYB 4: CYB 4 class enrollment is by audition only. This class is for older students who generally have at least 4 or 5 years of ballet experience. This is a more intense level of study in the classical ballet syllabus with an increased emphasis on the use of demi-pointe and pointe exercises at the barre and more challenging combinations in the center work. Variation work continues.
CYB 5: CYB 5 class enrollment is by audition only. This class is for the older, more advanced student who have many years of ballet experience. A more intense level of training with advanced movement vocabulary and a focus on technical and artistic development. Performance presence and technique practiced by working on variations.
CYB 6: CYB 6 class enrollment is by audition only. This class is for the most advanced students. This class offers intense levels of training, incorporating all techniques, vocabulary, and movements. Artistry and character development is honed, as well as speed, strength, and precision.
Adult Ballet: This is a beginner/Intermediate level class for students 15 and up. A traditionally structured ballet class to learn, improve, and maintain technique.
Pointe
All pointe classes are assigned by the pointe teacher.
Pointe Prep: This is the “pre-pointe” of pointe classes. The students in this class work from flat. Each class begins with foot strengthening exercises with a Thera-Band and emphasizes barre work to ensure a proper foundation for pointe.
Beginning Pointe: The students in this level have recently been approved for pointe shoes. Each class begins with foot strengthening exercises with a Thera-Band. Although mostly barre work, center is introduced with beginner pointe exercises.
Intermediate Pointe: These students have completed at least 2 – 3 years of pointe training. Each class begins with foot strengthening exercises with a Thera-Band. The students in this level have developed good execution of steps and show some discipline in their pointe work along with some consistent foot clarity. This class still builds strength and adds difficulty with each combination.
Advanced Pointe: The students in this level have completed at least 3-4 years of pointe training. Each class begins with foot strengthening exercises with a Thera-Band. The students in this level have proper execution of steps and show discipline in their pointe work along with good foot clarity. This class still builds strength and adds difficulty with each combination.
Progressive Ballet Technique
Progressing Ballet Technique (PBT) is an innovative body-conditioning and strengthening program that has been designed to enhance students' technique by focusing on training the muscle memory required in each exercise in all forms of dance. It is a unique training system using ballet-technique specific exercises to train skill acquisition in a graded and progressive manner from junior through to advanced levels. PBT helps teachers around the world prepare their students to receive the strength they need to achieve their personal best.
The program helps with injury prevention and rehabilitation and enhances the ability of athletes to perform at their best. It can be difficult for students to feel which muscles initiate the correct alignment in training. However, with the use of an exercise ball, the students gain a great sense of posture and weight-placement whilst feeling each correct muscle group working throughout each exercise, which then stays with them when whilst performing in dance or their chosen field of sport
PBT focuses on core strength, weight placement and alignment of the body with a gradual approach of carefully designed exercises and repetitions of these exercises that trigger their muscle memory. The program is designed with safe dance methodology to promote a long, healthy career and is now being taught by over 4000+ certified teachers worldwide and over 3500 schools globally have added PBT classes in their curriculum for students.
PBT is not only a program to improve technique in ballet dancers, it is now being appreciated and incorporated in training by all forms of dancers, athletes, physiotherapists and even footballers!
Modern
Modern: This class is for all students ages 10 and up as well as CYB students. In the class, the teacher will focus on helping students to build strength and technical skills
CME Modern: for students 18 and up. This class is open to adults and will offer the appropriate level of modern technique. Students will be encouraged to find not only their technical best, but also a high-performance level in their focus, projection, and musicality.
Acrobatics
Pre-Tumbling: For students 5-7 years old. This class will begin with stretching and conditioning. Students will learn control tricks and balance tricks, such as headstands, cartwheels, and walkovers.
Beginner Acro: For students 8+. This class will begin with stretching and conditioning. Students will learn control tricks and balance tricks, such as headstands, cartwheels, and walkovers.
Intermediate Acro: This class is for students who are ready to take their skills to the next level. With permission to move up from the beginner level, students will continue to work strength and control, as well as start to learn new skills.
Advanced Acro: For students with experience in acrobatics. This class will begin with stretching and conditioning. Students will continue to practice control tricks and balance tricks but will focus on practicing running tricks, such as running cartwheels and handsprings.