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Thursday, August 17
Don't forget Napa Regional Dance
Thursday, August 17, 2006 1:22 PM PDT
Dear editor,
I have read with interest the Register's article on the demise of the Royal Academy of Ballet and subsequent letters to the editor concerning the efforts of concerned dance parents to re-establish this asset to the dance community. However, I do take exception to the implication that without the Napa Valley Ballet School, there would be no venue for classical ballet instruction in the Napa area. Napa Regional Dance Company has been offering instruction in classical ballet technique (Vaganova) since 1988. Wanda Martin-McGill -- the company's current director -- and members of her instruction staff danced professionally with companies such as Dance Theater of Harlem, Colorado Metro Ballet, Ballet San Jose and Oakland Ballet. The excellence of the ballet instruction at NRDC has been demonstrated over the years by the acceptance of students into rigorous summer intensive ballet programs offered by national companies such as the Joffrey and ABT. Furthermore, staff and students are preparing right now for the sixth annual production of The Nutcracker, with performances scheduled at the Lincoln Theater in December. While I wish Napa Valley Ballet School all the best, I wanted to remind the community that Napa Regional Dance Company is and will continue to be a source for quality ballet instruction in the Napa Valley.
Mary Jo Kent
Napa
Thursday, June 10
Time to Hit the Stage @ CMA
The dancers of NRDC will be performing in their annual end of the year recital Saturday June 12th. The recital will be held at the California Maritime Academy in Vallejo. Tickets can be bought at the door for $10.00. The show will start promptly 4:00 p.m.
Wednesday, April 21
Students Accepted to Pre-Professional Summer Intensives
The following students from Napa Regional Dance Company have been accepted to pre-professional classical ballet summer intensives:
Alison Taylor Lange, 18, Napa High senior, to the professional apprentice program at Joffrey Ballet;
Katie Miller, 15, Napa High sophomore, Mallory Wedding, 16, Napa High junior, Summer Training Program at Joffrey Ballet;
Kelsey Miller, 13, Harvest Middle School, The Rock, Classical Ballet School, Pennsylvania
Cierra Rogstad, 15, Napa High freshman, American Ballet Theater, Professional Classical Ballet Intensive.
Alice Meltzer, 12, River School and Lauren Parsons, 11, Saint Helena, Diablo Ballet Summer Intensive.
Wednesday, April 21
National Dance Week @ NRDC
Another opportunity for dancers comes next week from the Napa Regional Dance Company's celebration of National Dance week, April 26-May 1 when the following master teachers will be available for classes:
* Classical Ballet with Artistic Director Lauren Jonas from the Diablo Ballet.
* Classical Ballet with Principal Dancer Eddie Steggie from San Franciscoand Diablo Ballet.
* International Ballroom and Latin Salsa with Diana Ramirez.
* Modern Dance with Dawn and Raymond Perrin, principal soloists with the Joffrey Ballet.
For dates, times and fees, please call Wanda McGill at 252-4615.
Tuesday, September 30
Napa Ballerina Continues to Perfect Her Technique
With a light pirouette and then a soft glide across the floor into an arabesque, Ali Taylor Lange literally dances the soles off her ballet shoes every 18 days. That's likely to happen when you're perfecting your technique for three hours every day, six days a week. A senior ranked ninth in her class at Napa High, Taylor Lange has spent the last decade practicing and performing with the Napa Regional Dance Company.
Over the years she climbed to the top of the company roster, practicing daily and taking private classes with the school's ballet masters. She started ballet classes when she was 4, advanced to pointe shoes at 9 and was most recently sent to ballet intensives on the West and East coasts.
This summer, Taylor Lange danced eight hours a day for three weeks with the American Ballet Theater in San Francisco, and last summer she spent two months dancing with the Joffrey Ballet in New York City. "New York was awesome, it was really, really cool," said Taylor Lange. "The studio company was working with the school, so I was able to watch their up-and-coming company members. I had five roommates who also danced with me; we could go twice a week to different shows. They were open to dance school students and they catered to us going to the shows to watch."
Taylor Lange performs every December in the roles of Sugar Plum Fairy and the Dew Drop in the Napa Regional Dance Company's annual "Nutcracker" production. According to company executive director Wanda McGill, dancers as skilled as Taylor Lange succeed depending on raw talent, dedication and focus. McGill feels Taylor Lange has the ability and the intense personal commitment it takes to be a professional dancer. "It's nice to have the talent in the school, but it takes 10 years to develop it," says McGill. "Ali has put her time in. She's been unwavering. There's a passion and inner drive that drive people to the top and if they have that they'll be the ones that we'll push for it. Not everyone has that passion."
Taylor Lange enjoys performing but also taking the time to practice her craft. Each week she spends more than half her studio hours working on pointe; a shoe with a rigid insole that helps dancers balance on tiptoe. The shoe's lengthening effect on a dancer's form can be exceptionally graceful. "I like (pointe) because it can really make you feel beautiful and it's incredibly easy when you're doing it right, which is really rewarding because it doesn't happen very often," she laughed. "The fact that it's so rewarding, yet really hard at the same time is what I like."
Next year Taylor Lange hopes to attend New York University to focus on school and benefit from Manhattan's robust ballet atmosphere. The studios of the American Ballet Theater and the Joffrey Ballet are located close to the NYU campus and will present a variety of opportunities for her.
Yet launching a dance career can be complicated. Even with years of preparation, ballet is a highly competitive line of work and Taylor Lange questions where it will take her. She has thought about going abroad to teach English and has often considered starting a restaurant, but dancing comes first -- at least for now. "I don't think I will actually go professional, but I think I'll always dance." she says. "It's very sketchy whether a dancer will actually make it. I'll probably end up going to New York and just see what I can do out there." But without hesitation she continues, "If I was offered a contract with a company, I would definitely take it in a heartbeat."
By ELIZABETH ZIPERN Register Correspondent
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