Yvonne Racz Key, the Artistic Director of Ballet Lubbock in Lubbock Texas, says the first main difference between Ballet Lubbock and other studios is that they are not a studio. They are a school. They have a teaching curriculum with a pre-ballet program and graduated levels from 1-8 with a performing regional company. Students have a dress code and attendance policy they must follow. Each level must take a class exam at the end of the year in order to advance to the next level. Their focus is teaching the technical and artistic technique of ballet as their main forte. They also teach modern, jazz and character dance as essentials of dance training.
Yvonne says as a teacher and director, her job is to instruct and inspire – to educate and inform. At Ballet Lubbock, they give constructive criticism all the time but they also blend it with the love of dance – to love the challenge of always working hard to be better educated as a dancer and as a human being. She always tells her dancers to never settle – to always strive for more, do more, expect more because they are all worth it. They have to want to be there. It takes a lot of dedication and, as they get older, sacrifice. Yvonne believes the motivation is the constant learning and challenge of ballet training. The joy of performing is priceless. That motivates all of them!
When it comes to her proudest moment coaching she has many. She says the best feeling is when one of her graduates has gone onto a professional career and they come back to say thank you. When she sees that not only have they made it professionally but they also recognize Ballet Lubbock as giving them the knowledge and training to get them there, that makes here proud of the students and of her school.
Yvonne became Artistic Director in 1997. Since then, Ballet Lubbock has produced an impressive alum of professional dancers and teachers. They are all top athletes. The company dancers are all top academic students in their schools. Their upper level dancers are accepted with scholarships to
National top ranked ballet school programs each summer. Their school growth rate is surpassed each year. Nutcracker production is praised with high acclaim plus they have live orchestra
accompaniment. These are all facts and Lubbock is lucky to have them there representing the city.
One fact not many people know is that they have a strong Outreach program in their Community Centers. Ballet Lubbock provides a free outreach performance to the Lubbock community that proves each year to be successful with far-reaching results and a lasting impact on those served. This event is a special performance of the Nutcracker to those children and special needs adults who would normally not be able to attend a ballet with a live orchestra. It is an educational and cultural experience that the audience takes home and never forgets. The list of area agencies that participate in this favorite event grows each year. Ballet Lubbock’s objective is to continue this project thereby encouraging and nurturing an appreciation of the performing arts to an audience that otherwise would not be exposed.
Ballet Lubbock also provides dance instruction for children from low-income homes who would otherwise not be able to afford the cost of ballet school tuition, in cooperation with the community centers in their city. These are all areas of which she can be proud.
The biggest mistakes Yvonne sees dancers make when performing is when they are obsessed with tricks and stage presence, port de bras and clean technique gets lost. Mainly stage presence seems to be the problem. The coordination of the arms and the face and emotion to be conveyed gets replaced with tricks.
Yvonne believes that leotards, tights, and shoes (ballet shoes, pointe shoes, jazz shoes) are the staples included in “must have” dancewear. Their dance bag should have sweats, leg warmers, foot tape, band aids, water bottle, some kind of snack, a tennis ball or roller and deodorant!
Yvonne’s goals for this year is for their younger levels in the school to have cleaner technique. Also, she wants to have their performances sold out!
Founded in 1969 by Suzanne Aker, Ballet Lubbock is a private, nonprofit organization that strives to be an integral component of Lubbock’s cultural fabric. Yvonne was offered the position of Artistic Director when she was visiting her parents and thought it was a good time in her life for a new challenge. She has been the Artistic Director since 1997.
Ballet Lubbock envisions a community transformed by art that embraces dance as a relevant, enriching and integral part of life. Their mission to changes lives. As a pre-professional ballet school, we strive to inspire our community through accessible dance education and performance of the highest artistic caliber.
Please post a comment if you have had any experience with Ballet Lubbock or Yvonne Racz Key.
