When Snow White, Seven Dwarfs and the Witch plays the Aronoff's Jarson-Kaplan Theater next week, it will mark the second season for Cincinnati Ballet's Otto M. Budig Academy. An annual concert combining students and company professionals is part of the package offered to academy students. This year, additional concerts have been added at Northern Kentucky University.

        By the numbers, it appears the school is on track for a healthy future. Executive director John Zurick says since its expansion and renaming in September 1999, every session has seen bigger numbers. Enrollment has grown from 168 students to 450. That's 450 different students counted over a year that includes three sessions — summer, fall and spring. At last count, 130 of those enrolled will be dancing in Snow White.

The Venture dancers work on their moves at the academy (Paula Norton photo) | ZOOM |

        Mr. Zurick credits the school's director, Daniel Simmons, with its steady growth.

        “The faculty has been transformed under his leadership,” he says. “He's brought a dedication to teacher training. He's out there with the Venture Dancers (the school's pre-professional performing group) putting us before captive audiences.”

        One reason ballet companies work to build strong academies is to train dancers for the professional group. Artistic director Victoria Morgan says that area is on fast-forward, too.

        “I figured in 10 years or so we'd have dancers ready to move in,” she says. After seeing some of the youngsters perform in Coppelia in April, she re-assessed the 10-year plan. “With their unified look, pointed feet, wonderful epaulement (upper body work), I thought "This is good. These guys are company material.' ”

        The Venture Dancers perform for Cincinnati Symphony Lollipops to Northern Kentucky Symphony to Cincinnati Museum Center. Mr. Daniels, a confessed workaholic, admits it's a heavy schedule for young kids.

IF YOU GO

What: The Otto M. Budig Academy of Cincinnati Ballet in Snow White, Seven Dwarfs and the Witch    When and where: 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday at Corbett Theater, Northern Kentucky University; 7 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday at Jarson-Kaplan Theater, Aronoff Center    Tickets: $20 at Cincinnati Ballet box office, 621-5282

        “The Venture Dancers are here six days a week,” he says. “The next level down, five days. But I'm interested in training dancers for Cincinnati Ballet, and that's what the Venture program is for.”

        Such an intense ballet program is not for everyone. Michael Tevlin, director of University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music's preparatory dance program, admits CCM has lost students to the academy.

        “We've seen enrollment decrease over the last couple years,” Mr. Tevlin says. “But it's with our younger students that we've seen the difference. Our older kids have stuck with us — especially those not wanting to be involved six days a week.”

        Ironically, Cincinnati Ballet's school originally grew out of the CCM prep program.

        “Our prep program is facing some serious challenges,” Mr. Tevlin says. “We're trying to give our students a chance to do other things like musicals, and we'd like to develop a touring program.”

        Directors at studios that fill a particular niche, such as those devoted to competitions in jazz, tap and lyrical dance, say they are not affected by the academy.

        Ms. Morgan says there was grumbling from other studios with this year's Nutcracker,when casting was closed to students outside of the academy.

        “If you have something that's going to produce high-quality training, some people are going to feel threatened. ... But now you can be trained in Cincinnati and be a professional dancer in your own back yard,” she says.

        Next up is a summer intensive with faculty headed by Lynn Walis and Debra Wayne from the Royal Academy of Dancing in London.

        Mr. Simmons hopes providing high-caliber training will make the academy a summer study destination for regional dancers, too.

        He's busy creating Dance Spectrum for kids who don't want a classical career but want the training to prepare for other dance careers. It will include classes in flamenco, modern and theater dance.

        “We thought we'd be in the red for the first two years,” Mr. Zurick says. “We've been throwing off positive revenues since the beginning. We're working to sustain that momentum.”

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