Ballet Recital Aims at Giving Kids a Leg Up

Ventura resident Tim Mikel is the first to admit that he doesn’t watch much of the performance when the State Street Ballet visits a local school.

“I watch the kids. I watch their faces change as they watch the performance,” said Mikel, president of the board of the Santa Barbara-based dance company. “You start to see them become absolutely enrapt by what’s going on. It’s an incredible experience.”

Mikel got to see plenty of changing faces--and changing attitudes--on Friday as the 20-member dance troupe performed before the 1,300 students at Balboa Middle School.

As part of an outreach program aimed at bringing fine arts programs into the schools, the dance company performed excerpts from its fall production, which will take place Nov. 8 and 9 at Santa Barbara’s Granada Theatre.

The performance at the east Ventura campus was sponsored by donations from Mervyns, Ralphs and the Amgen Foundation. And it was designed to break down any preconceived notions the youngsters might have about ballet.

“It’s an exposure to the arts so that they are not ridiculed and so that they will be supported in the future,” Mikel said. “The idea is not to turn every student into a dancer, but to give them an appreciation for dance.”

If Friday’s performance was any indication, that idea is catching on.

Students gasped at the strength of the male dancers as they lifted their female counterparts in the air. And they winced as the dancers performed splits and other leg-bending routines that would snap the limbs of those with less skill.

Some students even got to try their hand at classical dance during an audience participation segment.

“The kids were really mesmerized by the performance,” said Balboa Principal Helena Reaves. “I think some thought it would be boring, but once they got there they really enjoyed what they saw.”