Local teen dancers to join some of top training programs in the world

Submitted

Central Indiana Dance Ensemble (CIDE) and the Central Indiana Academy of Dance (CIAoD) are celebrating with three of their students who have been offered study opportunities across North America.

Sienna Paquette, Alison Bishop, and Abigail Groves, longtime dancers with CIDE, will wrap up their careers in Carmel and then head off to advance their skills and education at some of the top training programs in the world.

CIDE was founded in 1999 by artistic director Suzann DeLay. The company provides an environment for aspiring young dancers to learn, practice, and perform in a pre-professional atmosphere, in a variety of dance forms. CIAoD, recognized throughout Indiana for providing the finest in classical ballet training, is Carmel’s premier ballet academy and is a feeder for dancers in CIDE.

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The first of the dancers who will be moving on to further their dance education is Sienna Paquette. She is a junior in high school and has been dancing with CIAoD since the age of two. She has been a member of CIDE for the past seven years. During this time, she has achieved top 24 and top 12 semi-finalist in the Youth America Grand-Prix for her classical ballet solos in the senior division, as well as a top 12 semi-finalist in the ballet ensemble category two years consecutively.

Paquette has attended summer ballet intensives on scholarship with The Rock School of Dance in Philadelphia and The Sarasota Ballet in Florida. This past summer she was invited to attend the summer intensive at Canada’s National Ballet School (NBS) in Toronto, Canada. She said she is thrilled to announce she will join NBS’s Professional Ballet Program starting this fall.

She is forever grateful to Miss Suzann DeLay and all the CIDE instructors for the years of love, guidance, support and impeccable training that have allowed her to fulfill her dreams.

“Being accepted into Canada’s National Ballet School is not only an accomplishment but an honor,” Paquette said. “My acceptance into this prestigious school proves all of the hard work has paid off. Having dedicated 14 years of my life to ballet, this achievement is another leap in the right direction. I was interested in NBS due to its incredible training and amazing reputation. Unlike other ballet schools, NBS allows their students to attend in-person academic schooling along with the ballet school. Under the guidance of artistic director Margaret Tracey, I hope to become a professional dancer one day.”

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Alison Bishop is a senior in high school and has been dancing at CIAoD since 2015. She has been a member of CIDE for eight years.

Bishop said one of her favorite opportunities with CIDE has been the chance to participate in Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP), the world’s largest network of dance, offering scholarship, performance, and education opportunities for young dancers.

Last year, Bishop was awarded top 12 semi-finalist in the small ensemble category. At this year’s event she was awarded top 24 semi-finalist in the senior classical category and top 12 semi-finalist in the small ensemble category.

Bishop said she has enjoyed her chance to participate in The Ballet Alliance Festival and has had numerous outreach opportunities. This past year she enjoyed performing “Khachaturiana,” choreographed by Lisa Slagle, in Spokane, Wash. Some of her favorite outreach opportunities have included teaching class to Girl Scouts and taking part in the Zionsville holiday parade.

Bishop has had the opportunity to attend summer intensives at Boston Ballet School and the School of American Ballet. This past summer, she attended Pacific Northwest Ballet in Seattle. She is endlessly grateful to announce that she will be joining the Professional Division at Pacific Northwest Ballet this year.

She is full of gratitude to all of the teachers and staff at CIAoD and CIDE for their unwavering support, love and guidance along her dance journey. She is especially grateful to Miss Suzann for her time, energy and talents that have gotten her to where she is today and to all of her dance friends for making the studio feel like a second home and supporting her as she follows her dream.

“I am so honored and excited to be attending Pacific Northwest Ballet’s Professional Division this season!” Bishop said. “I fell in love with the Balanchine technique over the Summer Course, and it means the world to be back dancing in these studios! I am so excited to have the chance to dance alongside the company this year, most notably in their production of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker!”

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Abigail Groves is headed to the Sarasota Ballet Margaret Barbieri Conservatory. She began dancing at CIAoD when she was just two years old and has been a member of CIDE for the past four years.

Groves said she has enjoyed performing at the Penrod Arts Fair, participating in The Ballet Alliance, and competing at YAGP.

The past two summers, Groves has attended the Sarasota Ballet Summer Intensive. Both summers, she has been invited to join The Sarasota Ballet Margaret Barbieri Conservatory’s year-round ballet program. She said she is excited to announce that she has accepted the invitation for the 2024-2025 season.

“I am excited to join the Sarasota Ballet Margaret Barbieri Conservatory because they offer excellent classical ballet training with spectacular artistic staff,” Groves said. “I am honored that I was invited to stay for the year and can’t wait to learn from my new teachers! I became drawn to the Sarasota Ballet because of the inspiration of being surrounded by the professional company, some of whom performed at the Royal Opera House. I hope to learn from the people around me and to grow as a dancer both technically and artistically.”

Groves heads off to this new opportunity with many thanks to CIDE and CIAoD for excellent training and support. She is especially grateful to Suzann DeLay, Co-Owner/Founder of CIAoD/Founding Director of CIDE, Ashley Jacobs, Co-Owner of CIAoD/Co-Artistic Director of CIDE, and Anna Davis, Youth Company Director for CIDE, for their dedication to her training.

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CIAoD and CIDE celebrate these students’ amazing accomplishments as well as the fact that these students are fulfilling their mission. Their goal is to offer students an artistic and encouraging environment that nurtures all abilities while emphasizing technique, discipline, and artistic education. The aim is to provide a vehicle for children to be trained in dance principles and give them the opportunity to perform and train in dance at a regional level with other pre-professional, professional dancers, and teachers.

Best of luck to these three talented young ladies in their new ventures. To learn more about CIAoD, visit ciaodance.com. For more information about CIDE, visit cidedance.org.