Gala Performance to Celebrate 60 Years of Dance History in Westchester

Westchester Ballet Company has been entertaining local audiences for 60 years, distinguishing it as one of the oldest community ballet companies in the United States. 

Now they're reaching a milestone -- celebrating its 60th anniversary with a gala performance "Shaping Lives Through Dance," on Saturday, April 9, 7:30 p.m. at the Performing Arts Center, Purchase College.

Over the last 25 years the premiere ballet company has been widely recognized for its professionalism and artistic excellence. The company "Nutcracker" has showcased the talent of more than 1,000 local student dancers.

A number of these dancers have gone on to dance with professional companies, most recently, Georgia Lathrop of Briarcliff Manor, with the Stuttgart Ballet of Stuttgart, Germany, Carla Ranno of Briarcliff Manor, with Charleston Ballet Theatre, Sharyn Korey of Croton-on-Hudson, with Richmond Ballet and Anna Conte of Yorktown Heights, with San Diego Ballet.

The gala performance is staged and choreographed by Beth Fritz-Logrea and Jean Logrea as they mark 25 years as artistic directors. The mixed repertory program will feature excerpts from famous ballets such as Sleeping Beauty, Graduation Ball, Promenade, Les Patineurs, Pas de Quatre, as well as the premiere of WBC's newest ballet, Bolero.

One Yorktown Heights dancer Nicole Miller, 15, who is a junior intermediate company member, has a role in Graduation Ball. Miller is a sophomore at  and has been dancing at Logrea Dance Academy since she was four years old. She said she really enjoys ballet and tap dance.

"To prepare for a role in Graduation Ball it has been a lot of rehearsing since before December until now, April," she said. "It's a lot of work but it's also a lot of fun, at each rehearsal which can be a few hours I get to spend a lot of time with my friends and I know that in the end the show is going to come out great."

Other performances Miller has been a part of with the Westchester Ballet Company are the Nutcracker for eight years, as well as last year's production of La Boutique Fantasque. She has also been a member of Yorktown High School's Dance Company for the past two years.

"This weekend the one thing I look forward to the most is having all of the hard work pay off and being able to have a good time with my friends while putting on an excellent performance," she said.

"Shaping Lives Through Dance" celebrates the dream Westchester resident Iris Merrick set forth in 1951 to create the county's own premiere ballet company. There will be live performance with archival footage and filmed interviews of former company members as the event will honor WBC's growth in size and reputation under the artistic vision of the Logreas, recipients of Westchester's 2009 Cab Calloway Lifetime Achievement Award.

Performances will run April 8 and April 9. Tickets for Saturday evening are $25 - $45 and may be purchased at the Performing Arts Center Box Office, 735 Anderson Hill Road, online at www.artscenter.org or by calling (914) 251-6200.

A special open rehearsal performance on Friday morning, April 8, at 10 a.m. offers reduced ticket prices of $12 for students and seniors and will include a full dress run-through of Saturday's evening performance and conclude with a discussion of choreography, staging, costumes and sets with the WBC's artistic directors and staff. Tickets for the open dress rehearsal are also available at the Performing Arts Center Box Office at www.artscenter.org.

The Westchester Ballet Company is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to serving as a vital cultural resource for Westchester and neighboring counties, and accessible to all segments of the community. Toward this goal, The Westchester Ballet Company offers:

• Productions that combine the masterful skills of professional dancers and choreographers with the burgeoning talents of motivated, disciplined young dancers;
• The promotion of dance awareness and appreciation within the community;
• Scholarship programs that offer much-needed financial assistance to promising young dancers;
• Masters Class programs and other educational initiatives

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