Lockport City Ballet and Classical Ballet of WNY Students Attend Summer Ballet Programs

• Seven students from affiliated schools Lockport City Ballet and Classical Ballet of Western New York will be attending prestigious dance study programs this summer. All had to be accepted through an audition process; in some cases competing against hundreds of other students from across the country to earn acceptance.

• Larissa Kogut is 14 years old and a freshman at Amherst High School. She attends ballet classes at both the Lockport City Ballet and the Classical Ballet of Western New York in Lancaster. Larissa will be attending the Pacific Northwest Ballet School for five weeks this summer on a full tuition scholarship. The Pacific Northwest Ballet company and its affiliated school are considered among the best in the country. She will have 15-17 classes per week in ballet technique, pointe, variations (repertoire), adagio (partnering), modern, jazz, character (folk) dance, and Spanish dance. For more information: pnb.org.

• In addition to Pacific Northwest Ballet School, Larissa was accepted into the School of American Ballet in New York City, the National Ballet School in Toronto (affiliated with the National Ballet of Canada), the Chautauqua Institution’s School of Dance and the Boston Ballet School.

• Larissa recently performed in the Lockport City Ballet’s production of Zin! Zin! Zin! a Violin at the Kenan Center. She has also performed the roles of the Dew Drop Fairy and the Snow Queen in The Nutcracker.

• Rachael Phipps is 15 years old and a sophomore at Roy Hart High school. She has been dancing at the Lockport City Ballet since it first opened in August of 2002. Rachael will be attending the Boston Ballet School for five weeks this summer. The Boston Ballet and its affiliated school are also considered among the best in the country. She will dance for 5-7 hours a day and have classes in ballet technique, pointe, variations, adagio, modern, jazz, character, and Pilates. Rachael will also rehearse for and then dance in a performance at the end of the five week summer session. For more information: bostonballet.org.

• Rachael has attended summer dance programs for the past two years. In 2004, she danced at the New York State Summer School of the Arts, School of Ballet. Then in 2005, she attended the Chautauqua Institution’s School of Dance and performed at the Amphitheater at Chautauqua.

• Rachael also recently performed in the Lockport City Ballet’s production of Zin! Zin! Zin! a Violin at the Kenan Center. She has also performed the roles of Clara, the Sugar Plum Fairy and the Snow Queen in The Nutcracker. In the 2005 Spring Performance, she danced the role of Odette from Act II of Swan Lake.

• Ayla Davis, 12, of Lockport, and Madeline Carver, 12, of Westfield, NY will be attending the Chautauqua Institution’s School of Dance this summer. Ayla attends the Lockport City Ballet and Madeline attends Classical Ballet of Western New York. Madeline also danced at Chautauqua in the summer of 2005. They will have classes six days a week in ballet technique, pointe, character, modern, jazz, and adagio. For more information: ciweb.org.

• Three students will be attending the New York State Summer School of the Arts, School of Ballet in Saratoga Springs: Elizabeth Cappuccino, 11, and Nick Cappuccino, 12, of Lockport, and Jacob Artist, 13, of Williamsville. Sixty New York State residents are accepted out of hundreds who audition. The four week summer program, which is partially funded by the state, includes classes in ballet technique, pointe, character, jazz, and adagio. The students also attend performances by the New York City Ballet, who are in residence at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center. For more information: emsc33.nysed.gov/nysssa.