Heritage School of Classical Ballet/millermuller ballet

Today, several students joined me on a short field trip to the J. Erik Johnson Central Library's 7th floor. We were able to view a box from the Mary Bywaters Collection. The contents are a tutu worn by Mme. Krassovska and a pair of her pointe shoes. They were used in a 1964 production of "Swan Lake" and the shoes are autographed by Madame.

This is a small but wonderful piece of Dallas' ballet history. We were able to see some of the construction techniques used on tutus at the time. The feathers are ostrich and are still in good condition. Surprisingly, they aren't shedding bits of feather when the costume is opened up.

My students were charmed by the darning on the shoes. And the water stains are easily visible on the heels and show what she did to keep them on her feet because she did not believe in using elastics.

We also had a few minutes to view some exhibits across the hall. The library currently has one of the original Dunlap broadsides of the Declaration of Independence and Shakespeare's First Folio. Both are inspiring and it's wonderful to find them right here in Dallas.

The staff on the 7th floor are all extremely nice and generous with their time. And today's visit with Misty Maberry was such a pleasure. Take the time to look and see what is there. You might be as surprised as I was.

Tata wire up right before I locked up. She got loads of loving and scritches and is ready for a long nap.

On August 4th, 2007 we officially opened the doors of Heritage School of Classical Ballet. In the beginning, millermuller ballet was a small group of dedicated dancers with an even smaller group of students. All were adults except one. But the company needed a home, so we found a location.

I worked like a maniac to get our Certificate of Occupancy and the Lord blessed us by making it happen in 2 weeks. With the help of family, friends, and students, we started work in April. Most importantly though, without my husband, the studio would never have come to fruition. He reconstructed the space and built our beautiful floor with only the help of our inexperienced hands.

We started building in mid-April and worked every spare moment. When it was time to have the professionals move and hang our mirrors, I had to switch modes from construction to director.

But we opened on August 4th, 2007. Classes started up again and we've been running like mad ever since. We even acquired two cats. Although Yuri is no longer with us, Tata is (and always has been) our mascot.

So....

Happy Birthday, HSCB! You're 18 years old today. I guess we can say that today you are all grown up.
🎉🎁🎂🍨🎊

Our season starts early this year. We will be performing at the 2nd annual Dallas Moon Festival on Saturday, September 6th. This is a free event at Flag Pole Hill on Northwest Highway. I have created a new Japanese-ballet Crisfield piece that is beautifully serene. So come by and enjoy this fun day with us!

They say that French is the universal language of ballet. Nope! It's marking!!

El lenguaje de los bailarines.

After 17 years, it's time to paint. The studio looks like it did when we first built it, except that the paint has gotten... blech...

The job will be done tomorrow and, fingers crossed, everything will be put away in time for class on Monday.