As she floats across her living room floor, practicing her solo
ballet piece, one can not help but smile.
Even though she hasn’t warmed up and the floor is carpet, her
talent shines through as her ballet technique takes her through her
routine.
Brianna Crockett is 12 years old and lives outside Elizabeth.
She is a student at International Ballet School in Littleton.
Although she has only been at the school for a year, she has been
dancing even before her feet touched the ground. Her mom, Michele
Crockett, remembers her first dance, which began in her belly.
“Brianna was always doing flips in my stomach,” Michele said.
“She was born ready to dance.”
Because of her early dancing, Michele nicknamed Brianna Jete, a
French ballet term which means to jump from one foot to the other,
while she was pregnant. After Brianna was born, Jete became her
middle name.
Brianna took her first ballet lesson at age three. Throughout
the years, Brianna learned jazz, tap, lyrical and hip-hop. But
after her previous dance instructor saw her ballet talent, she
recommended Brianna focus solely on ballet and attend a ballet
school. She now is at a 5/6 level of ability and has moved up to
dancing pointe ballet at IBS. Pointe is a form of ballet where a
dancer dances on the tips of her toes wearing specialized point
shoes.
“I like all of the different dance styles, but ballet is my
favorite,” she said. “It so beautiful when you’re good at it, it
can bring out so much emotion.”
Currently at the International Ballet School Brianna and the
rest of the dancers are working on their performance of the
Nutcracker. This year Brianna has three parts in the production: a
big party girl, a cupid and a soldier. With the performance coming
up the first weekend in December, Brianna’s schedule is busy with
nightly and weekend rehearsals.
The Nutcracker is not her only upcoming performance. Brianna is
also preparing for the Youth American Grand Prix, where she will be
performing two solo dances: a ballet piece and a modern piece. The
Youth American Grand Prix is the world’s largest student ballet
scholarship competition that awards over $250,000 in scholarships
to dance schools worldwide.
Brianna’s ballet piece is called the Paquita, a ballet piece
first performed in the 1800’s.
“I’m really excited for the Grand Prix because this is the first
time I am going to compete at this competition,” she said. “In my
perspective it’s a lot different than the other competitions I have
been to and there will be a lot of people dancing all different
styles.”
Brianna hopes one day to be part of a Russian ballet company,
being able to travel the world while dancing. Her love for dance is
obvious, especially during a blizzard.
“When we got all the snow I couldn’t go to dance class,” she
said. “I had to dance at home because I have so much energy and I
felt like I needed to do something for me. I couldn’t just not
dance, so it’s really something special for me.”
Michele could not be more proud of Brianna, and she beams when
talks about her daughter’s dancing. She said her 12-year-old’s
passion for dance is inspiring, and she is excited to see where
ballet takes Brianna in the future.
“What I love the most is watching her dance freely in the living
room to one of our favorite bands, Evanescence,” she said. “She
looks so beautiful, it brings tears to my eyes.”
The International Ballet School’s production of the Nutcracker
is Dec. 3-5 at the Newman Center Gates Concert Hall at the
University of Denver. Tickets are $21. For more information visit
www.internationalballetschool.net
or call 720 283 6323.
The Nutcracker, performed buy the International Ballet
School
When: 6:30 p.m. Dec. 3
4:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 4
11:30 a.m., 3:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 5Where: Gates Concert
Hall and Newman Center at the University of Denver, , 2344 E. Iliff
Ave. in Denver
Tickets: $21 and can be purchased at Ticketmaster.com or by calling
303-830-TIXS
