Celebrating World-Class Training and Talent

May 2018

Writer // Janelle Morrison         Photography // Courtesy of Indiana Ballet Conservatory

Join the Indiana Ballet Conservatory (IBC) this May for the annual Spring Showcase on Sunday, May 20. IBC’s youngest dancers will present charming fairytale dances with new original choreography while upper-level dancers will perform some of their award-winning works from international ballet competitions. The showcase will highlight the arduous training that IBC’s dancers and award-winning instructors have been focusing on over this past year.

IBC offers one of the strongest pre-professional training programs in the Midwest and is one of the most respected conservatories in the nation. IBC produces talented students, such as award-winning IBC pre-professionals Quinn Starner and Alexandra Manuel.

Starner spoke about the importance of the local community’s support of IBC and its students. “Ballet wouldn’t be ballet without people coming to see it,” she said. “When we are performing our showcases, I think that they [the audience] see the strength and dedication that we show on stage. We hope that young kids see that if they work hard every day, they can pursue their dreams.”

“Everybody here motivates me and is always working hard,” Manuel expressed. “We all try to motivate each other and work hard every day as we’re preparing for the Spring Showcase and Jackson.” Manuel will be competing, along with Starner, in the prestigious USA Ballet International Ballet Competition held in Jackson, Mississippi, in June.

Manuel continued, “These competitions are very important, especially at the age that I am now because you can be seen by directors from major dance companies that can help you later in your professional dance career.”

IBC provides its students with opportunities and world-class training that are unique to this conservatory. Several of IBC’s students have come to Carmel from other states for the opportunity to train year-round with IBC’s founding artistic director, Alyona Yakovleva-Randall, and her renowned colleagues.

“We have a very important showcase this year,” Yakovleva-Randall emphasized. “We are representing what we have been working on for the last year, almost every single day for many hours.”

Purchase your tickets for IBC’s Spring Showcase and enjoy an exciting glimpse at the future stars of ballet as they perform a unique variety of classical, contemporary and character repertoire.

Tickets available at indianaballetconservatory.org.