Developpe - the RBAI Quarterly Newsletter, Spring 2008

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	Développé - Spring 2008 Edition - April 7, 2008	RBAI.biz - Previous Issue - Subscribe by email

Contents:

YAGP News: Congrats Team RBAI!
Registration 2008-2009
Note from the Academy Director
RBAI Final Exams - REVISED 4/24/08
Ballet to Business: Annual Campaign
Teacher Spotlight: Tatiana Pali
Student Spotlight: Ruth Danek (Level 1)
Welcoming New Staff:
- Lisa Burns
  Development Director
- Elizabeth Audet
  Outreach and Performance Coordinator
Announcing the Spring Production
Summer Programs
Projected Festival Performances
Ballet 101: Buns

YAGP News: Congrats Team RBAI!

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Congratulations TEAM RBAI on your outstanding achievements at YAGP 2008!

"The Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP) is the only student ballet competition in America which awards scholarships to the leading dance schools in the U.S. and abroad. The competition is held annually in New York City and is open to dance students of all nationalities 9-19 years old.

Launched in the year 2000 by two former dancers of the world-renowned Bolshoi Ballet, Larissa and Gennadi Saveliev, YAGP was created to provide extraordinary educational and professional opportunities for young student dancers, acting as a stepping stone to a professional dance career. It aims to fulfill its mission by offering educational opportunities for young dance students; an opportunity to win contracts to international ballet companies, including American Ballet Theatre Studio Company; scholarships to the leading dance schools in America and abroad; invaluable professional exposure before world-renowned dance professionals; performance opportunities at some of New York's most prestigious theaters; as well as dance festivals around the world and workshops with the renowned master teachers and judges of the competition." (www.yagp.org)

RBAI had the opportunity to prepare five dancers to compete at the Youth America Grand Prix Regional Semi-Finals in Philipelphia this year: Hailey Agran, Senior Division; Hyesun Park and Beatrice Rowlands, Junior Division; and Emily Bain and Ashley McNally, Pre-Competitive Division. Hyesun Park placed in the Top 12 for both the Junior Classical and Junior Contempory divisons. Each of RBAI's competitors were invited to participate in the week-long YAGP Intensive, which is an honor given to only a hand-selected number of students. Attending the Intensive this year will be Hailey Agran and Beatrice Rowlands.

Courtney Messer, one of RBAI's Level 6 students, has been given the opportunity to represent our school at the Finals in New York in April. Academy Director Terri Messer and chaperone/parent Kim Motter accompanied Ms. Alyona and our five students to the regional competition where Larissa Saveliev, former Bolshoi Ballet member and co-founder of the prestigious international dance competition, wondered why Courtney failed to register with the group from RBAI. Courtney's performances in the two previous years had earned the notice of the founder of the event and she sought out Mrs. Messer for an answer. When she learned that Courtney could not attend with her fellow academy students because she was spending a final week with her father in Georgia before he deployed to Iraq, Ms. Saveliev not only invited her to come to New York for the finals in April but also suggested that the event be simulcast to where her Dad, Sgt. Jay H. Messer, Jr. of the 76th Brigade, 163rd Field Artillery Unit, is now stationed. YAGP officials are currently working with the national media to try to accomplish this great feat.

We want to wish Courtney good luck! And to all five students who competed: Ladies, you represented the school, your teachers, and yourselves with grace and beauty, all the while projecting your most professional demeanor. We are all so proud of each of you, the great job you did, and the dedication and commitment you have shown to this art and your school. We love you!

Registration 2008-2009

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Currently, RBAI operates on a three-semester system. Fall Semester and Spring Semester each consist of 19 weeks of classes, including a one-week recess, a period of rehearsals, and a closing performance. Summer Semester consists of Summer Session classes, Summer Day Camps, Summer Intensive, and Summer Intensive for Young Dancers.

We will follow the same semester structure next year. However, we are changing the enrollment procedure. Our goals are:

To keep the same class schedule for Fall and Spring Semester, for less change and more predictability
To incorporate Summer Semester into registration, to allow families more advance planning time
To deliver the rehearsal schedule for our Fall Performance and our Spring Concert
To publish a list of known and anticipated fairs, festivals, and other community performances, and their rehearsal schedules, so that interested students may sign up for specific events and so that repertoire may be set for the year
To identify students interested in private lessons, so that a comprehensive schedule can begin at the start of Fall Semester

In order to meet these goals, students will receive a registration packet during April with next year's class schedule, summer programming information, school performance rehearsal information, a list of upcoming community performances, information about private lessons, and more. We will also be offering a monthly payment plan. We hope that families will benefit greatly from these administrative improvements.

Note from the Academy Director

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RBAI Parent Message Board

The purpose of the RBAI Parent Message Board is to provide an efficient, effective means of communication from the academy to parents and among families. Each family is expected to register, so that the academy can disseminate information quickly and accurately. Parents who are not registered should go to www.rbai.biz and click the Parent Messageboard link on the home page, then click Register and follow the prompts. Usernames should include first name or initial and last name for the board's use as a school directory and carpool resource.

Email messages from the academy will be sent to the email address provided by families upon Message Board registration. Each family is asked to update its profile, if there is a change in the family's preferred email address for notifications. Families can also email each other directly through the board.

After registering, parents are encouraged to sign up for the Usergroups which pertain to their student(s). Each student should belong to the ballet class group for his/her level, along with any other classes which are part of his/her curriculum. Also, groups are created for community performances, school performances, field trips, and other uses. Emails can be sent to these group members specifically, if students are registered by group.

The Message Board itself exists as a reference tool for information that families may want to revisit periodically, as a directory for families to be in contact with each other, as a tool for carpool formation (see the 'location' information provided during registration) and as a place to exchange information that supports the mission of RBAI.

Please note -- participation on the board by students is reserved for those who are at least 13 years old.

RBAI Final Exams

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End-of-Year Examinations to be Held for Public on Saturday, April 26, 2008

As we approach the close of the school year, we would like to invite ballet enthusiasts, friends, family members, and those interested in the educational scope/sequence of RBAI's curriculum to attend our End-of-Year Examinations. Our hope is that students and faculty members will attend as much of this all-day event as possible.

Our students have worked diligently this year and look forward to demonstrating the skills they have acquired. Please come support them and be entertained and enlightened at the same time! The examination schedule is below. At this point, examinations are scheduled to take place in Studio C at RBAI; however, we are looking for a cost-effective stage to use instead. If you can serve as a resource for this need, please contact Russ Smith at Russ@rbai.biz. We hope to see you there!

Saturday, April 26th Exam Schedule - REVISED 4/24/08
Level 1 Exam	8:05 - 9:05 a.m.
Level 2 Exam	9:15 - 10:30 a.m.
Level 3 Exam	10:40 - 12:10 p.m.
Gentlemen's L3 Exam	5:30 - 7:00 p.m.
Level 4 Exam	2:10 - 3:40 p.m.
Level 5 Exam	3:50 - 5:20 p.m.
Level 6 Exam	12:20 - 1:50 p.m.
Level 7 Exam	7:10 - 9:00 p.m.
NOTE that class schedules are altered or interrupted on Exam days; refer back to the Spring 2008 Calendar (also available on forms page or ask your instructor for more information.)

Ballet to Business: Annual Campaign

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Capital Campaign . . . Annual Campaign . . . Annual Fundraiser -- regardless of the name, it is the lifeblood of every Not-for-Profit organization. What is an Annual Campaign? It is the process of generating new contacts and donated funds. This process has an attainable goal and a beginning and ending date. Everyone has received a phone call from the sheriffs department, asking for a donation in exchange for the little badge sticker for their car. The sheriff's campaign happens twice a year. All Not-for-Profits conduct annual campaigns to stay ahead of the budget and to generate new contacts.

This is the first year RBAI has attempted the first third of a three-prong approach to our annual campaign, the mass mail-out. The other two prongs are the mass phone-call and the special event. The advantage of using mass mail is that it puts RBAI's material into people's hands. The disadvantage is that it is impersonal and easily discarded. The phone call is personal and direct, with a quick response; on the downside, a phone call is always an interruption. A special event is the best tool of all; a personal invitation to gather and enjoy being treated like royalty, while knowing you are invited because you are able to donate. The downside is that it costs so much up front with no guarantee that it will pay for itself.

Why is this the first year RBAI has conducted an Annual Campaign? Two reasons: first, we are finally able to look forward better and project our needs as well as our abilities; second, we need to generate more contacts and funds. At this time last year -- and the year before -- we had close to twenty thousand dollars in donations to sustain our classes with. The reason for the fall off in our donation receipts is the same for businesses and families everywhere. Nationally, higher gas prices, an election year, and the war affect donations. Locally, the failure of Ballet Internationale, the property tax scare, and the city going after another Superbowl bid have limited many of our usual donation sources.

RBAI is doing a mass mail-out at 11 cents a stuffed envelope.

We don't see how we can fail, unless no one provides us any addresses to mail to... Wait! That's what has happened!

We understand that the Parents' Association Leadership Committee has just recently had a meeting concerning the Annual Campaign, and that it will take time to filter down to every one of the families; so, we have received permission from the Board to extend the deadline to April 18th. We know this is new to everyone, even the artistic staff. We want it to have every chance to succeed!

Why do we need an Annual Campaign? (Or, I pay my tuition -- shouldn't that cover everything?) Actually, you are right! Tuition should cover everything, but I am sure no one wants to pay $15-$18 per hour of class time. RBAI is proud to make classes as affordable as possible. The next closest school in price that has ballet (no one has our level of instructors) charges right around $14 an hour but has no certified or degreed instructors and no curriculum for the studio classes. RBAI classes are $6 an hour. Yes, some tuition increases have to happen, but we will keep them at a minimum because we do want every child to have this opportunity.

What does an Annual Campaign do for you, an individual family? Well, for the price of every 100 addressed envelopes stuffed with the three letters provided on the Annual Campaign disk, your family receives a receipt for thirty donated dollars. If that letter generates a contact and donated income, we (the RBAI administrative staff) get to do what we like to do most -- keep the tuition down at the current level. We all win! Please help us do what wins for everyone, so every child can experience the opportunity of taking classes with these wondrous instructors.

Sincerely,

Russ Smith
Executive Director

Teacher Spotlight: Tatiana Pali

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Ms. Tatiana Pali, a former Moscow Classical Ballet and Ballet International Prima Ballerina, has been with the Russian Ballet Academy of Indiana as a senior instructor from the day it opened on Novemebr 9th, 2005. Ms. Pali now serves as the academy principal and primary instructor of Levels 4 and 6.

As we wonder about the young Tatiana Pali, she says that she remembers seeing a ballet on television at the age of seven and being mesmerized. "I knew that I wanted to learn how to do that," she thought, and she began taking classes at a local arts school. By the age of ten Ms. Pali was performing with a professional ballet academy and she was hooked. After her first performance she knew without a doubt that this is what she would do for the rest of her life. Of course, Ms. Pali had many memorable teachers and instructors, but she particularly remembers Tamara Vetrova, Natalia Taborka and Marina Semionova fondly. She also had the advantage of growing up watching many great dancers; her favorites included Galina Ulanova and Ekaterina Maximova. However, Ms. Pali's most memorable experience of her dance career occured when she was given the opportunity to compete at the prestigious International Ballet Competition in Varna, Bulgaria in 1991, where she won the gold medal and was named Moscow's Best Ballerina of the Year.

As an instructor, Tatiana's goal for her students is to see them grow and progress as artists. It is vitally important for her to see their inner desire and drive to perform. She loves to watch her students perform to the best of their ability. The student that Ms. Tatiana has spent the most time with is RBAI graduate Tuesday Mayhew, who debuted as Christine in Yakovleva's Phantom of the Opera last year. "I have always known that Tuesday was a promising dancer. I would like to be able to continue to coach my students in different roles like these." says Ms. Pali.

When asked about her career, Ms. Pali states that she emphatically believes she would not have changed a single thing about the path she chose. She loves her students and teaching; she loves her restaurant, The Russia House; and she even loves her lack of free time. This great level of dedication has brought Ms. Pali to win the Outstanding Teacher Award at the Youth America Grand Prix Competition in Chicago in both 2004 and 2007.

Despite her full schedule, Tatiana still finds time to read and she loves to travel -- Paris being her favorite destination. She loves to try all sorts of new foods but her favorite is still the Russian Blinchikis, a form of crepe or pancake served folded with sour cream, honey or jam.

We are extremely grateful for the great contribution Ms. Tatian Pali makes to the RBAI family.

Student Spotlight: Ruth Danek (Level 1)

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After seeing The Nutcracker at the Murat Theater, Ruth Danek became interested in dance, and at the age of seven decided it was time to pursue this art form herself. Since then, Ms. Alyona has quickly become her favorite teacher and ballet her favorite genre of dance. Although she has yet to perform publicly, she tells us that she is very much looking forward to the experience.

Despite all the dancing, Ruth does still find time outside the studio to knit, read, play with her baby sister, and listen to music. She also takes pleasure in scrap booking, the color blue and enjoying her grandmother's fudge! Given the choice, her favorite destination is her grandparent's cattle farm in Mississippi, where, as she tells us, "My favorite activity on the farm is climbing the hay bales."

Apart from being a serious student of ballet, Ruth is also evidently a serious student at school where her favorite subject is science. "I like the experiments," she comments. "Right now I am studying birds and other flying creatures." And as for the arts, Lewis Hine is her favorite artist. "He took pictures of children working in factories in the early 1900s. He also photographed the Empire State Building being built," she explains. His pictures appear in her most recent read, Kids at Work by Russell Freedman.

As for the future, Ruth hopes that five years from now she will still be dancing. When asked what ithe hardest thing is about being a dancer she replied, "The hardest thing about being a dancer is keeping my position correct while I'm dancing." And what is the best thing about being a dancer? "The best thing about being a dancer is that it is fun!"

Welcoming New Staff

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Lisa Burns, Development Director - Lisa Burns and her husband David moved to Indianapolis in 2003 to begin a new campus ministry. David is the director of Campus Outreach Indianapolis. Lisa is very involved in mentoring college women at IUPUI. She also speaks regularly to women on college campuses about maturity and vision for their lives. Lisa has a vision to help young people live a life of purpose and excellence.

Lisa is a mother of three: Madeline (10), Coleman (7), Isabella (2). Madeline has been dancing for six years; she is currently a Level 2 student at RBAI. Madeline and Coleman attend the Oaks Academy, a private school in downtown Indianapolis where Lisa is very involved as a volunteer. She is a part of their admissions team and spends much time in both children's classrooms. Lisa and her family have traveled extensively around the world, to the former Soviet Union, Bangkok, Thailand, the Middle East and more. One of the highlights for Madeline and Lisa was a visit to the Teatro Colon, in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Lisa has a passion to see Indianapolis grow in its love and appreciation for the art of ballet and expose the city to its new ballet darling: RBAI.

Elizabeth Audet, Outreach and Performance Coordinator - Mrs. Audet has recently joined the RBAI staff as Outreach and Performance Coordinator. As such she will be contacting and coordinating performance opportunity events (both public and private) in and around Central Indiana for the purpose of public relations and marketing on behalf of The Russian Ballet Academy of Indiana. Her goals are to allow the Central Indiana community generally, as well as its established arts organizations, the opportunity to witness for themselves the excellence of both students and faculty of RBAI so that it may take its place amongst the premier youth arts organizations of the region.

Mrs. Audet brings to this position her prior experience organizing and initiating various children's community performance events and fundraising projects, including a children's performance at the Indiana Historical Society's Winterfest. These events have benefited children overseas as well as local citizens of Indiana.

While still a student, Mrs. Audet staged and organized her own fashion show as a fundraising event. After graduating from Oxford as an MA (Oxon) with an optional thesis on the works of T.S. Eliot, she worked for The London Graphics Company and TSL Publishing in London, England, conducting research projects, assisting with marketing campaigns and organizing lecture tours.

Centrally important to her life is her husband of 18 years and her three children, all of whom have been heavily involved in various performing arts around Central Indiana. A devotee of the arts and literature herself and a reader and writer of poetry, her goal for her own and all children is to help them find meaning and independent thought through the springboard of art, literature and historical awareness. By bringing the arts to children and children to the arts, she hopes that both may flourish.

Announcing the Spring Production

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		Introducing... RBAI will be presenting "Evolution: Development of a Dancer" as its Spring Performance. This production will focus on classical ballet but will also have modern, contemporary, and character dance pieces as well. Ms. Alyona's vision for "Evolution" is to show the progression of a dancer's growth through the different elements of ballet. Patrons will be delighted to view the maturation of the dance right before their eyes: from barre, center, and allegro to pointe. The ensemble pieces and solo variations will be chosen from ballet legends such as Coppelia, Le Corsaire, Pas de Quatre, La Fille mal Gardee, Sleeping Beauty and "Egyptian Dance" from Jacobsen's Spartacus. We will be performing on Saturday, May 10th at the Madame Walker Theater at 2:00 p.m. Tickets are now available to purchase on the website or you may buy them at the RBAI main campus Monday through Friday, 3:30 to 8:00 p.m. and Saturday, 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
A special thank you! The above logo was made with the help of Laura Breece, the official photographer of RBAI and IBC. Laura photographed a group of our students especially for the use of this logo. In order of appearance from right to left: Sofia Sergeyeva Sergieva (future dancer in training - the daughter of RBAI instructors So Yon Nam and Sergey Sergiev), Audrey Li (Pre-ballet), Hanah Oblak (Level 1), May Lin Russell (Level 4), and Courtney Messer (Level 6).