November 20, 2024 // Diocese

Local Studio Aims to Share God’s Beauty through Ballet

Clare Hildebrandt

Reporter

Project Ballet, a dance studio located in Fort Wayne, will look to showcase the beauty of “The Nutcracker” with its upcoming winter performance. On Saturday, December 7, and Sunday, December 8, dancers from the studio will perform at the Embassy Theatre in downtown Fort Wayne.

Project Ballet operates as a pre-professional ballet school with the aim to classically train dancers while maintaining the dignity of each child. They also provide supplemental schooling for middle and high schoolers.

Beth McLeish, CEO and artistic director of Project Ballet, told Today’s Catholic about the annual show, saying that “The Nutcracker” brings many joyful Christmas memories to the minds of young and old alike.

As a lifelong Catholic, McLeish founded Project Ballet with principles that highlight faith and family. As the years continued, she realized providing beauty in art – God’s beauty – is her calling.

“I definitely have personally struggled with how to give back to the world, because feeding the homeless or things like that seem like a more urgent and pressing need for humanity, but it’s also so important to make sure that children and adults have moments of beauty, and there’s not enough of that in the world.”

McLeish said she is eager for the performances of “The Nutcracker” and said the focus on the child Clara, the ballet’s main character, is often what draws people in.

“There are not many ballets with the central character as a child, and so taking your family to see ‘The Nutcracker,’ particularly your children, is so relatable for them.”

“The Nutcracker” also serves as a coming-of-age ballet, as
throughout their time as dancers, the children have the ability to grow into new roles.

“‘The Nutcracker’ has become a really wonderful annual tradition for our students. It’s so fun to see them grow from the first role that they perform, which is usually an angel,” McLeish said, explaining that the students typically move to more prominent roles.

And when a child is cast in a new role, it becomes a very special moment for the whole studio.

“It’s really special when you’ve been dreaming since you were a little angel about being maybe a Chinese soloist or the Spanish soloist, and when you’re finally old enough to get that part, it’s really special,” McLeish told Today’s Catholic.

The most demanding role, according to the artistic director, is the snowflake dance. It requires much stamina to perform the whole routine.

“The role that requires the most rehearsals – and is also what we call ‘puffy,’ which means you’re huffing and puffing while you’re dancing the role – is the snow scene,” McLeish said.

During the dance, McLeish is backstage directing and giving cues into a headset. The snowflake dance is the only performance that she can turn her headset off and simply watch due to its primary focus on the dance itself.

“At the end of Act 1 is the snow scene, where Clara is walking through a beautiful snowy field, and the snowflakes come to life and are dancing around her.”

Knowing the hard work that goes into the dance, McLeish said it’s always one she enjoys watching.

“You’re just seeing the snow falling and the beautiful dancers dancing around in their costumes, but they are completely pushing themselves to the point of physical exhaustion during that section because it’s so hard and demanding. That’s one of the sections that I personally rehearse and prepare for the stage,” McLeish told Today’s Catholic.

Lily Hilgar, a 15-year-old ballet dancer at Project Ballet, was cast as Fritz, the mischievous little brother of Clara, who notoriously breaks his older sister’s nutcracker toy. It’s an exciting role for Hilgar, who has always desired to play the part.

“Fritz is always very sneaky, especially when he sees the nutcracker,” Hilgar told Today’s Catholic. “He has a solo with a lot of jumps. At one point, he has a gift, and he’s trying to figure out what’s in it. He gets to dance with Clara and does a lot of acting because of the party scene he dances in. There’s always a lot of pantomiming and acting going on,” Hilgar added.

Often, the dancers practice for long hours about five days each week. Most dancers, though invigorated by their art, are exhausted by the end of the week.

Hilgar admitted, “My feet always feel pretty beat up at the end of the day.”

A member at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church in Fort Wayne, Hilgar said preparing for “The Nutcracker” has given her the perfect opportunity to put her faith in action.

“We all have hard days, especially at ballet, and it’s nice to be able to be there for people,” Hilgar shared. “And it feels really nice to be able to use the gifts that God has given me to the best of my ability for others.”

Visit projectballet.org for more information about attending Project Ballet’s performance of “The Nutcracker.”

Clare Hildebrandt is a reporter for Today’s Catholic.