Flashback: Winter Adventures!

Before the Thorn tour we relaxed a little during Christmas break, came back and hit the studios for more classes and rehearsals to prepare for our 2015 Great Lakes Tour to Michigan and Minnesota.  On our tour we were very fortunate to continue meeting wonderful new people as well as reconnecting with old friends.  After two quick workshops at For His Glory and Integrity, we headed off to North Branch, Michigan where we held one of our biggest workshops of the tour at Country Christian Church.  During this time we were lucky enough to stay with Laci Yarbrough, (a previous company member) parent's house in North Branch.  After a fun time of reconnecting with the Yarbrough's, we traveled to Jackson, Grand Rapids, and Battle Creek, Michigan where we continued to stay busy performing, holding master classes and workshops. Once we finished up our events in Michigan, we were excited to head off to Minnesota where we reconnected with Alyssa Schneider's (a current company member) family and hometown in Winona, MN.  While in Winona, we performed at Alyssa's old elementary school, St. Stanislaus, as well as traveled a few hours to Woodbury and Coon Rapids, MN to perform at New Life Academy and Coon Rapids EV Free church.  We left the Schneider's house full of homemade bread and cookies and finished our tour with a master class held at MDU in Onalaska, WI.  Exhausted after two and a half weeks of touring, we hit the road for the 15 hour drive back to Colorado Springs.             

Spring Adventures: The Thorn

After finishing up with our very cold but successful tour to Michigan and Minnesota, we jetted off to Fort Worth, Texas to begin our new and exciting adventures with The Thorn Productions.  This was Ballet Emmanuel's first year touring with The Thorn.  We joined a tour team of about 40 other talented and driven people who all worked together to share the message of Jesus Christ using they're individual talents through dancing, martial arts, theatre, acting, aerials, singing, as well as back stage and technical crew work.  While on tour with The Thorn we were fortunate enough to continue working with and meeting new people.  We traveled to Fort Worth, Kansas City, Denver, Sacramento, and finished up the five week tour in Nashville.  Our days were filled with devotionals, rehearsal time, helping set up Thorn merchandise tables, filling thousands of programs, getting our makeup airbrushed, teasing and braiding our hair, performing, and getting to know both the local and touring cast and crew members. We loved getting the opportunity to be apart of a bigger production and tour team and were blessed to have met so many new people.  After the five weeks of flying from city to city, and staying in various hotels, we were all so thankful to finally be back home in Colorado Springs for some much needed rest and relaxation time.

           

We're Back!

We are back in Colorado Springs rehearsing and getting ready for Christmas but here is a flashback from our 2014 Midwest Tour. On tour we were very fortunate to continue meeting wonderful new people as well as reconnect with old friends. After Ballet Emmanuel taught a master class for the dance department at the University of Kansas we traveled Fayetteville, Arkansas where we taught additional master classes with The Art of Motion. After leaving Arkansas, Ballet Emmanuel traveled back to Kansas where we taught a workshop and had the opportunity to hold a concert in Kiowa, Kansas at South Barber High School, where we were joined by Studio Pro Dance who performed a piece to open our concert.

From there we traveled to Wichita, McPherson, Hutchinson, and Salina, performing in church services, at nursing homes and holding more master classes. While in Salina, we celebrated Molly's 23^rd birthday by heading off to the Salina zoo.

Our final stop was to Hesston, Kansas where we enjoyed the chance to return to Hesston College for a chapel performance. Before heading home we had the opportunity to sit down with some faculty and students to chat and grab a quick lunch at the cafeteria. We once again made the drive across Kansas and arrived safely home where we unpacked the vehicle one last time!

We would like to thank everyone for all your prayers and support throughout the tour. We thank God for all He did to keep us safe and for the opportunites we had to share our love for Him and our love for dance.

Little Ballerina Workshop!

We want to invite you to our 2014 Little Ballerina Workshop! 

Coming up on Saturday, September 27th Ballet Emmanuel will be holding its Little Ballerina Workshop for children ages 4-9. The workshop will be held at Turning Pointe School of Dance located at 7667 N. Union Blvd, Colorado Springs, CO 80920.

Ages 4-6
1:00pm-3:00pm
Tuition: $20 per participant (registration due by September 20th)
Early Bird Tuition: $15 (due September 13th)

Ages 7-9
1:00pm-3:30pm
Tuition: $25 per participant (registration due by September 20th)
Early Bird Tuition: $20 (due September 13th

Registration forms and fliers are available on our website (www.balletemmanuel.org)

Help us get the word out, if you know of anyone who might be interested in attending please send them to our website or contact Erin Benson at (719)433-8820 for more information.

We are excited to see what God will do during this year's workshop!

A New Beginning!

While it is always sad to say goodbye to dancers, we love saying hello to new ones! Meet our new apprentices!

Alli Sierra

Alli Sierra is from Aurora, Colorado and began dancing at the age of 3. She studied seriously with Cornell Callender and Andrei Vassiliev at the National Ballet Academy of Denver. Alli spent her summers at intensives with American Ballet Theatre, Walnut Hill, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and Joffrey Ballet. She furthered her studies at the University of Kansas (KU), graduating with a B.A. in Dance and a B.A. in Math. During her time at KU, she studied with Jerel Hilding, Patrick Suzeau, Muriel Cohn, James Moreno, and Willie Lenoir. Alli was selected to perform with KU University Dance Company for every concert presented. She was also chosen to work with guest artists Jennifer Hart from Ballet Austin and Autumn Eckman from Gus Giordano Dance Company in Chicago. Alli is very excited to start her first season with Ballet Emmanuel.

Andrew (little brother), Sandy (Mother), Mike (Father), Alli

Molly Jones

Originally from Lincoln, Nebraska, Molly Jones has been dancing since the age of five, training in ballet, contemporary/modern, jazz, and tap. Molly graduated high school from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, majoring in ballet, while also studying other styles. While at UNCSA, Molly trained with, previous American Ballet Theatre principal, Ethan Stiefel, while he held the position of Dean of Dance. As a dance major at the University of Kansas, Molly was awarded the Patricia Joyce Ellis art and dance scholarship. She danced as a company member of the University Dance Company for four years, and performed in every concert presented. Molly was also apart of the honor society at KU and studied pre-physical therapy along with her dance degree in hopes to one day attend physical therapy school and become a physical therapist once she is finished dancing. This will be Molly's first year as an apprentice member dancing with Ballet Emmanuel.

We also asked the girls a few questions:

What are you most excited for in your first year with Ballet Emmanuel?

Alli: I'm most excited for the chance to travel and spread God's message within other communities across America.

Molly: I'm most excited for the traveling and touring across America, as well, as getting the opportunity to dance and share our message with children.

What is your favorite Bible verse?

Alli: "But the Lord is faithful, who shall establish you, and guard you from the evil one." 2 Thessalonians 3:3

Molly: "For the happy heart, life is a continual feast, a cheerful look bring joy to the heart." Proverbs 15:15

Alli and Molly have been in Colorado for several weeks now working hard to learn all about Ballet Emmanuel. They have been taking class, learning and rehearsing pieces for our new concert, and getting a crash course on the business aspect of B.E. We are thrilled to have them here with us and are excited to see God work through them in extraordinary ways.



Summer is Here Workshop!

Please Join us for a Ballet Emmanuel Workshop as we celebrate the beginning of Summer!

Register Online at balletemmanuel.com!

Spring has Sprung!

Springs has sprung & we celebrated the warm weather by holding our annual 

Springs Break Dance Workshop!

Over our three day workshop we were blessed to see how God is working in the young dancers of Colorado Springs. The children who attended our workshop spent three days in ballet and modern technique classes, bible studies, and choreography class. At the end they got to showcase the hard work they had done and everything they had learned by performing with Ballet Emmanuel. We thank the Sunrise United Methodist Church and everyone who came out to support Ballet Emmanuel at our concert!

2014 Auditions!

Attention dancers!

Ballet Emmanuel is looking to hire salaried company members and/or salaried apprentices for the 2014/2015 season. Please visit our website at www.BalletEmmanuel.org for more information.

Tis' the Season!

It's that time of year again! Ballet Emmanuel is in the Christmas spirit…. how about you? While we haven't been busy decking the halls we have been busy performing some Christmas repertoire around Colorado Springs. On December 8th Ballet Emmanuel had the pleasure of performing at Heart Song Ministries for their morning worship service. What a wonderful way for us to begin the holiday season.

On December 12th the company was again out and about Colorado Springs. This time we traveled to Special Kids Special Families to perform a full-length concert with some Christmas additions.

Ballet Emmanuel is looking forward to having our own Christmas party…secret santa's and all. On December 18th Ballet Emmanuel will perform at AWANA night. We are very thankful and look forward to this great opportunity before we head out for Montana. Yes…. you heard right! Ballet Emmanuel will be taking a trip to Montana December 20th-22nd! We pray for safe travel and hopefully not a large amount of snow.

Ballet Emmanuel wishes you all a very Happy Holiday Season!

"Back Home Again..."

As we finished out our Midwest Tour and began our journey home, we were very fortunate to continue meeting wonderful new people as well as reconnect with old friends. After Ballet Emmanuel left Kiowa, KS we traveled back to Woodward, OK for a workshop with the Woodward Studio of Dance. Then it was back to Kansas where we spent a day teaching masterclasses for the Pointe School of Dance in Hutchinson. That evening we had the opportunity to hold a concert in Newton at Salem United Methodist Church, where we were joined by Angel Feet Dance Studio who performed a piece to open our concert. From there we traveled to Salina to dance at a Sunday morning worship service at University United Methodist Church. Afterwards, while still in Salina, we added an addition to our tour family. We are pleased to introduce our mascot for the 2013 Midwest Tour; "Sir Umm..." (yes we are referring to the Pumpkin!)

Next, we (along with "Sir Umm...") traveled to Ellsworth, KS for a workshop with the Ellsworth Ballet. We also enjoyed the chance to return to Hesston College for a chapel performance as well as Moundridge for a workshop that same night with Angel Feet Dance Studio. Our last stop on the tour before heading home was a chapel performance at Central Christian College in McPherson. In the company of "Sir Umm...", we once again made the drive across Kansas and arrived safely home where we unpacked the vehicle one last time!

We would like to thank everyone for all your prayers and support throughout the tour. 

We thank God for all He did to keep us safe and for the opportunities we had to share our love for Him and our love for dance.

"On The Road Again..."

After beginning the season with a whirlwind of activities, lots of crazy days in the studio, and saying goodbye to old faces and hello to new ones, Ballet Emmanuel kicked off our 2013/14 tour season. We began our Midwest Tour last Thursday and have since been to Arkansas, Oklahoma and Kansas. We have had the great opportunity to reconnect with people as well as meet many new ones. The trip first led us to John Brown University in Arkansas where we were blessed to work with a small number of students from the Great Abandon Dance Ministry, as well as perform at the University. The college students were wonderful and very eager to learn. 



While in Arkansas we traveled just a town away to work with the Adonai Ballet Academy. The students quickly absorbed everything we had to teach which included a couple pieces of choreography and they then joined us onstage at John Brown University. Dancers from New Creation Professional Dance Company also joined us for the workshop and concert. It was wonderful to once again share the stage with these lovely dancers!  We then skipped over the border and into Oklahoma where we were graciously welcomed at First United Methodist Church. While in Woodward we tried our luck riding a golf cart and hiked to an elevation that would make a Colorado Native chuckle, but we enjoyed ourselves very much. 

We then headed to Kiowa Kansas to work with Studio Pro Dance & Fitness. The students were great and quickly picked up our choreography and joined us on stage for the concert. While at Studio Pro we were fortunate enough to get to participate in some classes (we even tried Hot Yoga!) 





As we finish out our Midwest tour we pray that God will continue to use us to bless those we meet. We greatly appreciate all your prayers and support. 

Little Ballerina Workshop 2013

We want to invite you to our 2013 Little Ballerina Workshop! 

Coming up on Saturday, September 28th Ballet Emmanuel will be holding its Little Ballerina Workshop for children ages 4-9. The workshop will be held at Turning Pointe School of Dance located at 7667 N. Union Blvd, Colorado Springs, CO 80920.

Ages 4-6
1:00pm-3:00pm
Tuition: $20 per participant (registration due by September 21st)
Early Bird Tuition: $15 (due September 14th)

Ages 7-9
1:00pm-3:30pm
Tuition: $25 per participant (registration due by September 21st)
Early Bird Tuition: $20 (due September 14th)

Registration forms and fliers are available on our website (www.balletemmanuel.org)

Help us get the word out, if you know of anyone who might be interested in attending please send them to our website or contact Erin at (719)433-8820 for information.

We're excited about what God will do during this year's workshop!

Season of Change

While it is always sad to say goodbye to dancers, we love saying hello to new ones! Meet our new apprentices!

Alyssa Schneider

Alyssa Schneider began her dance training at age 3 in Winona, Minnesota at the Minnesota Conservatory for the Arts. As a dancer Alyssa spent her summers training with the American Ballet Theater, Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, Fort Wayne Ballet and The Milwaukee Ballet. At the age of 16 Alyssa transferred to Perpich Center for the Performing Arts and later to St. Mary’s University to finish out her high school career. Alyssa went on to attend the University of Missouri-Kansas City’s Conservatory of Music and Dance where she studied dual emphasis in both ballet and modern techniques. In her time at UMKC, Ms. Schneider was chosen to perform for the opening night Gala performance at the Kauffman Center for Performing Arts as well as Carmina Burana, Dark Elegies by Antony Tudor, and “Without a Word” featured at the American College Dance Festival. Ms. Schneider holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance Performance from the University of Missouri-Kansas City

Meet Alyssa's Family:

Sophia (youngest sister), Julia (oldest sister), Kyle (baby brother), Alyssa (third oldest), Chelsey (older sister)
Kneeling: Ron (Dad) and Mary (Mom)

Sarah Sherlock

Sarah Sherlock began dancing at the age of two in Binghamton, New York. She studied classical and contemporary ballet at various schools in the area. Her summer intensives include Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet and Ballet Magnificat. In 2011 she felt the Lord call her to Youth With a Mission where she completed at Discipleship training school in Montana. During a mission trip to Dominican Republic she felt God leading her to continue in Dance. She went back to Montana for the School of Dance Studies and had the opportunity to go to London to partner with Project Dance for the Olympic games. Most recently Sarah has been enjoying teaching ballet and Zumba in her hometown. She is excited to start her first season with Ballet Emmanuel!

Meet Sarah's Family:

from left: Stacy (sister), Michael (brother in law), Paul (Dad), Nephew, Sharon (Mom), Sarah

We also asked the girls a few questions:

What are you most excited for in your first year with Ballet Emmanuel?

Sarah: I'm most excited to see God's hand at work through the dances we perform, to be able to use our gifts and give them all back to him.

Alyssa: I am excited to not only continue promoting the arts but to glorify God by using the medium of dance and be part of the Ballet Emmanuel ministry.

What is your favorite bible verse:

Sarah: Hebrews 6:19- We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.

Alyssa: Philippians 4:13- I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Sarah and Alyssa have been in Colorado for several weeks now working hard to learn all the ropes. They have been taking class, learning and rehearsing pieces for our new concert, and getting a crash course on the business aspect of B.E. We are thrilled to have them here with us and are excited to see God work through them in extraordinary ways.

Fini!

Wyoming Tour

At the end of April we headed out to Evanston, Wyoming for the first time. We held a Friday-Saturday workshop for people from the community as well as a concert Saturday Evening. We had wonderful students, specifically one brave 4-6 year old who got up on stage with Miss Melanie and performed all by herself. We were so proud of her!

From there we headed to Saratoga, Wyoming to work with the Platte Valley Arts Council. We had a fantastic workshop with 30 adorable students and had the biggest audience for the concert in Saratoga to date!

We ended the Wyoming Tour with a stop in Cheyenne. We held another workshop at the Cheyenne Alliance Church with some of the sweetest girls you will ever meet. Of course they performed in our "Courage" concert that evening, and did a lovely job. 

Workshop Participants at Evanston Alliance Church

4-6 Year Old class in Saratoga, WY

7& Up Class at Cheyenne Alliance Church

With so many great people to work with, how could we not have a wonderful time!

Grand Junction Tour

We finished off the 2012/2013 season with a tour to Grand Junction, CO. This was our 5th time working with the wonderful people of GJ and we had a fabulous time. While there, we held dance workshops from ages 4-Adult for 3 days including bible studies, ballet class, learning choreography, Israeli dancing, and creative worship. We even had a guys hip-hop class and Miss Mia worked them hard! It was great to have 3 days to get to know our students, work on their technique, and really dive into God's word. By the end of the week, they all knew the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego very well :)  The students all performed in our last performance of "Courage" on May 31st and did a fantastic job.

Intermediate Ballet Class

4-6 year olds

7-9 year olds

Advanced Ballet Dance

With the Advanced dancers after our last performance of the season

Incoming!

We would like to introduce you to the newest Ballet Emmanuel apprentices, Miss Sarah Sherlock and Miss Alyssa Schneider. Stay tuned for more information on our newest dancers!

Au Revoir!

Laci Landry and Mia Calabrese are retiring from Ballet Emmanuel to head off to new adventures. We have been blessed to have them as a part of this ministry and will miss them greatly! Thank you ladies for all of your tireless efforts over the last years. You are truly amazing!

Laci Landry has been with the company for 5 years and is very excited to continue her journey in pursuing a career in education as well as teaching dance locally. She will continue to work with Ballet Emmanuel as part of the administrative staff for the 2013-2014 Season. We are very excited for her and her husband as they take on new beginnings.

Mia Calabrese will be pursing a career in secondary mathematics education as well as teaching dance in the Colorado Springs area. She will continue to take class with the BE dancers and help out with volunteer opportunities whenever she can.

 (due to technical issues) click the link below to see a slideshow of Mia...

http://youtu.be/Brbb8aiuxr4

Interested in booking us?

If you are interested in having Ballet Emmanuel participate in your event, come to your church or other organization to hold a workshop and/or concert, please feel free to contact us for more information by phone or e-mail:

Phone: (719) 433-8820

E-mail: BalletEmmanuelCompany@gmail.com