The Children's Ballet Theatre

Principal Aim:

Children's Ballet Theatre (CBT) offers a curriculum of classical training.  The principal aim of CBT is to provide its students with the proper, qualified instruction in the art of ballet.  With this development comes poise and an agility and grace of movement known only to the art of dancing.  Correct training, introduced at the right age, is of paramount importance in the education of dancers.  It ensures faultless technique and distinction of styles, whereas errors permitted at the beginning of dance training become increasingly serious impediments as the student progresses.  At CBT our syllabi have been developed over 40 years of experience and are taught throughout each level of our curriculum.

Performing:

“Ballet is, first and foremost, a performing art,” states Founder and Artistic Director Julie Orlob.  It was with this philosophy that Julie started the school in 1969.  While it is a school CBT also provides the thrill of performing – the make-up, the lights, and the audiences.  The heady essence of theatre falls magically upon each child.

There are many who believe that performing should be in a recital format where children stand in a straight line and perform a sequence of steps.  CBT disagrees.  Dancers should move throughout the space and learn to create visual patterns and scenes for the audience to appreciate.

Other schools believe that performing should be a competitive sport.  CBT disagrees.  Ballet is an art form where all talents can be beautiful and appreciated.

CBT feels that only through carefully planned performances can a child develop a strong love for, and appreciation of dance.  As a gifted children’s choreographer, Julie is dedicated to providing as many quality performance opportunities as possible to young dancers.