Ballet Petit, Inc.

Sending love out to all of you today and always. Know that you are loved by many, especially us. Keep sharing your love with one another. Love makes the world go ‘round. Happy Valentine’s Day.

Happy Lunar New Year!

And here is a sample of our progress in 2012-2013. Do you recognize some familiar faces of our advanced class, and front desk staff? Our village is alive and well. We are still dancing. We will be back dancing in this beautiful and beloved space. Be patient. Oh... and Happy Bday, Miss Patience!

Eight years ago today we opened our beautiful studios on Industrial Parkway West. At 4:41, the Fire Marshall gave us the ok, and we drove from Mission Blvd right away. What a great time! Look how much you have grown! Happy Anniversary BP studio.

Happy 2/2 Day! Enjoy some beautiful past 2/2 memories. Can you count the different tutus? The number of tutus? Short tutus vs long tutus? Can you identify what they are from? Bonus points for picture #10. A year from today will be 2/2/22! We will really celebrate it big next year. By then, we will be back in our tutus, back together. Hang in there. Stay positive and keep dancing. And let’s keep doing our part to be a part of the solution to our health crisis. Masks, washed hands, physical distancing, responsible social interactions, vaccines... whatever we can do! Hugs!!

Since it will be raining tomorrow, and more in the coming weeks and months, let’s stay home and dance on Zoom!! What? Just find a space at home and enjoy ballet class. It is convenient and a great alternative while we need itThe commute is super short and very easy! New session starts this week. Register today! Let’s get this new year off to a great start- at the barre! Email [email protected] or see packets at www.balletpetit.com

It is time to get dancing again! Yay! Our new session starts on Monday. January - June session starts next week on January 4. Zoom ballet classes have been a very worthwhile option for us. We are getting a physical and emotional break from school, and are filling our homes with ballet music! Once we can again be on-site, we will be ready and in great shape. We will do a Spring Presentation in May or June since our virtual Nutcracker worked out so well. We will be on Zoom unt...il County Health Guidelines say we can open safely at 50% capacity. The full packets are on our website at www.balletpetit.com or through the BP parent email list. Here is a peek. Happy New Year! We made it through 2020! Now let’s get ready to dance our way into and throughout 2021 ! We deserve it!

https://photos.app.goo.gl/BkkGUXwZEgWGipED8 Well, here was a nice surprise! In Fall of 2019, we hosted the Moscow Ballet Nutcracker cast (1 of the 3 In their national tour group) for about a week. Recently, we came across part of this clip at 1:41-1:57 where their director is being interviewed. Of all the rehearsal spaces they used across the entire country, they used footage of Ballet Petit!! It is so nice to see our space full of its usual life, rehearsals and classes in ...full swing, especially here with our welcomed guests. Someday we will again be doing this! May the new year bring it safely, as soon as possible, and keep us all healthy in the meantime. Stay vigilant! Wear your masks. Come to class. Register for the new session! Happy New Year!!! 2021, you have big shoes to fill!! We are full of hope and are getting ourselves ready.

Laughing and crying at the same time is exhausting, but reminded me that this is a unique part of experiencing our Nutcracker. It was good to feel this again, with you! We play hard and work hard. Dancers, staff, families, and supporters, thank you for today. Amidst a pandemic, we had over 200 devices connected to our webinar to share our common experience, our love, our BP Nutcracker. I am so relieved, and so happy! Now, we have one more week of classes, 2 weeks to rest and get ready for Ballet to start again in January. Good job! Be safe!!

Happy Holidays to everyone. Celebrate the wonderful things that happened this year. Look to the future to when we can celebrate together. We are still together, even when we are apart. Virtual Holiday Hugs and Sugar Plum dreams to you! Love, Me

See you at 2pm! Happy Nutcracker, everyone! Love, me

Story Time with Miss Peggy is this Friday at 7pm. Same time, same place. Check your BP emails for the link. It is the same link as 12/4. Dress up for the holidays! I am going to wear an ugly Christmas Sweatshirt that was a gift, ugly on purpose! Haha! This will be our last Story Time of 2020. We will restart them in January, probably on 1/15. Watch your BP emails to confirm. See you Friday!

Tomorrow. Saturday, 12/12/2020 at 2pm, we will share our love and hard work in our 42nd Annual Nutcracker, but virtually. It has been quite a journey. How lucky for us to be together during this time. Sending out Nutcracker love to all past, present, and future BP dancers, staff, families, audience members. Dancers are awesome people who are determined, dedicated, creative, caring, and grateful to be dancing. Thank you and let’s keep at it until we can be back together in the studio. See you on Zoom tomorrow! New session starts January 4. Registration is now open. Happy Holidays.

I love the title of this blog article. It caught my eye. We Cannot Do Without Dancing. So true! While the harsh reality is that we have to do without many aspects of our ballet lives these days, weeks, and months, we can keep dancing at home in our Zoom classes and enjoying dance in other ways, while being responsible to one another and sheltering in place. We crave this dance thing we do every day like we breathe every breath, and we need to do so to stay healthy and happy ...for the day when we can come together again. Ironically for me, I met the author of this blog in a ballet class at BBT in 2018 when I realized we had some things in common. She is a beautiful dancer with a lovely soul. I hope this blog helps you in some way. I am happy to know what my ballet friends is up to, and feel a bit less isolated reading her blog. Stay safe dancers. We will be together in studios soon, but only when it is safe for everyone!

The Dance World lost a great last night. Ann Reinking, choreographer of Broadway’s musical, Chicago, preserver of Fosse technique, movie star, master teacher, and more, passed away suddenly at only 71. Over three summers, five Ballet Petit dancers had the privilege of working with Miss Ann during the last week of the Royal Danish Ballet Summer School. Those summers, I had the privilege of watching her work and being in her larger than life presence. Miss Ann, you raised the barre for us all. You will be missed. Thank you for your work and dedication to the arts. We have been inspired. It is now time for you to rest.

Happy National Daughters’ Day to everyone!! We are thankful for the many wonderful ways our daughters make our lives so wonderful, beautiful, and meaningful. Enjoy your day! Sending more virtual hugs today.

Years ago, one of our student dancers started experimenting with tutu designs on her Ballet Petit friends, like Miss Patience when she was a student dancer. Jenna Anderson is now a professional tutu designer. On Saturday, past will meet present, even under Covid. One of our SugarPlum Fairies, Diana Barbacioru, will debut Jenna Anderson’s special tutu designed just for BP and Diana. This is the tutu that almost didn’t happen in a year Nutcracker could have not happened, as well. Join us on Saturday. We have a lot to celebrate, especially the gift our parents and teachers have given us of Nutcracker magic and classical ballet training... the gift that keeps giving, year after year! Happy Nutcracker everyone! See you on Zoom!

Nothing was going to keep us from continuing our 42 year tradition, nothing! See our wonderful work on Zoom on Saturday in our Virtual Nutcracker at 2 pm on 12/12. Purchase your Household tickets for $25-100 (you decide) on Venmo @Ballet-Petit-Inc and we will send a link when you include your email address. More info at www.balletpetit.com

Here is a sample of what a Zoom class looks like from my house! I wonder what the neighbors think I am doing when they walk by. Well, I am loving every minute of being back teaching at Ballet Petit. Thank goodness for Zoom! Be safe everyone, wear your masks, be patient for Governor Newsom to allow indoor dance classes again. We will be back in the studios safely, when that happens. Our shared responsibility is to shelter in place until then. Thanks, Alli , for sneaking over to capture these pics!!

Ballet Petit dancers are back in full swing in their ballet classes on Zoom! We are happy to welcome new and other returning dancers to join the fun each week. For information or to register for Fall/Nutcracker classes, Email [email protected] or go to www.Balletpetit.com. Come Zoom along with us now. When Governor Newsom permits dance studios to return indoors in Alameda County, we will resume indoor classes safely. Stay safe. Thank you for helping slow the spread. We all want to get back inside our studios, but our common health and safety remains our shared responsibility. See you at ballet!!

Happy Labor Day! Be safe, wear your mask, watch out for the heat. Here are just a few outtakes from Saturday’s Nutcracker Watch Parties. It was a fun, and emotional day. My cats even hung out and enjoyed both shows, in their own ways!! See you soon. Fall/ Nutcracker session starts tomorrow!! Miss Nicole will be teaching Tuesday nights again. I will be back on my Thursday and Monday old schedule. Woohoo!!

All set for today’s Ballet Petit Nutcracker Watch Parties ? We hope to see you at 2 pm for the Saturday 7pm show or at 7pm for the Sunday 7pm show, from December 2019, of course. Get comfy and enjoy the show! You looked great! And the new season starts now! Miss Peggy is all set! Do you see the tiny Nutcracker in this photo? Her Nutcracker Prince gave this to her when she was Clara in 1970. She even did 2 of her Clara shows at Chabot, among other local theatres. The ph...oto is a publicity shot they used that year. The doll is a recreation of my costume our first BP costumer made for me about 38 years ago. The ballet slippers were from when Miss Peggy was about 6 years old. Precious memories. I know you have many precious memories, too. We will make some new ones this year! Registration continues for classes starting Tuesday! See you soon! Happy Nutcracker 2020!!! See more

ALL dance studios, including ballet schools, etc. are still not allowed to be open in any way in Alameda County, unfortunately, but we will find a safe way to continue to train and enjoy our 42nd Nutcracker season. It is important that we stay safe and follow the local, county, and state health laws. Since in- studio classes of any kind are not permitted still, our Zoom schedule has expanded to our old class length times. Our Fall/Nutcracker session starts on Tuesday, Sept. ...9, so register today. We will be learning Nutcracker choreography to perform on Zoom in December, and will be adding many special activities our alumni and staff are creating. Did you see the recent parent email about Saturday’s watch party? Check it out! Miss Peggy also recently sent an email detailing the Public Health rules that apply to us as a dance studio in Alameda County, if you wish to read the details. This email also links to official government documents. So, it is important that we stay safe, AND keep dancing. We can do both! See you on Zoom, and thank goodness we have it! Registration info at www.balletpetit.com or email [email protected]. Enjoy this promo video from our 2019 shows, in the meantime. See you in class next week!!! See more

In case you were wondering what ballet class looks like after a stem cell transplant, surviving cancer twice since 2016, turning 60, and terribly missing being with her Ballet Petit community... here is a Zoom clip from yesterday. Miss Peggy has been taking 2-3 ballet classes on Zoom, too! This class is out of NYC, and a class she takes each week. And soon she will be back teaching at BP. Miss Peggy can hardly wait to return to teaching for Fall/Nutcracker session. Let’s kee...p Ballet Petit strong as we look to the future after Covid-19. Ballet training builds strong bodies, minds, hearts, empowers our spirits to be focused, disciplined, and determined, no matter your age!! We look forward to dancing together next session. The adult class also returns. Register today! See you at the barre, where we find comfort, strength, and some very important time each week to dig deep within ourselves and dance!! So excited... See more

It is time for back to ballet, back to school. Join me in adding Ballerina Bookclub to your ballerina life experience. Dancers are so smart. We know this as we train together. Let’s read together too! Keep connecting, on new ways, in old ways!

Enjoy this promo from our Nutcracker 2019 shows. Register today for Fall/Nutcracker classes. Keep our 42 year tradition alive! Extended class times, special Nutcracker activities, and the return of Miss Peggy and Miss Nicole to the schedule. So much to celebrate, and we need to celebrate. Classes start soon, on Tuesday, Sept. 8. See you at the barre! Happy Nutcracker!! Registration packet also available at www.balletpetit.com or email [email protected]

Guess who is back on staff for Fall/ Nutcracker 2020!! I am so happy to announce the return of Miss Nicole. She will be returning on Tuesdays, after her recent maternity leave. Did you know Miss Nicole started dancing at Ballet Petit when she was 4 years old? She was a very young Clara, and quite a lovely SugarPlum Fairy and Odette. She even danced the title role the year we did Rumpelstiltsken, a loooong time ago. Ah, the memories! Miss Nicole has been a part of Ballet Petit for over 35 years! Imagine that!! We are so happy to have her back.

Coming Soon! Ballet Petit’s Nutcracker 2020, our 42nd anniversary. Fall / Nutcracker registration packets will go out via the BP parent email list within a week. Read today’s email for further information on our plans for an alternative Nutcracker for this unique and unpredictable year. Let’s make a great experience for our dancers as we await more normal times. In the meantime, enjoy this video of a little BP dancer who is keeping our tradition alive. Send more!! See you soon.