Summer Intensives
Current BYB Students Pre-Ballet 2 and up are eligible for BYB’s Summer Intensive. Non-BYB students with previous ballet training ages 8 and up contact enrollment@bluegrassyouthballet.org to schedule a placement evaluation for our Summer Intensive programs. BYB welcomes males and females with a strong ballet background, who have a great love for dance, and who are not afraid to push themselves to the next level in a healthy and positive environment. Spots will be filled on a first-come-first-served basis. BYB reserves the right to adjust a student’s class placement if necessary at any given time. Tuition fees are non-refundable except for documented cases of extreme illness/injury. Our faculty includes our current faculty as well as guest teachers. An informational email that consists of the dress code, our studio policies, and weekly intensive schedules will be sent to all registered dancers before the beginning of intensives.
BYB Summer Faculty
Rebecca Herrin
REBECCA HERRIN is a Lecturer of Ballet at the University of Oklahoma School of Dance where she teaches ballet performance, pedagogy, and general education courses. Rebecca’s performance experience includes dancing with Kentucky Ballet Theatre, Ballet Theatre of Chicago, Milwaukee Ballet, Hartel Dance Group, and as a principal dancer with Montana’s Artisan Dance Company. She has served as company teacher for Oklahoma City Ballet, ballet mistress for Oklahoma Festival Ballet, choreographer for OU Opera Theatre, and is coordinator of the OU School of Dance Youth Program. She is certified in Progressing Ballet Technique and is an ABT® Certified Teacher of Primary – Level 5 of the ABT® National Training Curriculum. Ms. Herrin received her MFA from Montclair State University, a BBA and MBA from the University of Oklahoma Michael F. Price College of Business, and is the former Executive Director of the Oklahoma International Dance Festival. She joined the OU School of Dance faculty in 2005.
Green Group (Ages 7 – 9)
Our Green level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Pre-Ballet 2 or Elementary A. Our Green level intensive meets twice a week from 9:00 – 1:00. Students will participate in conditioning, ballet, contemporary or character dancing, and choreography. Please bring your own lunch.
Tuesday, June 6, 2023 and Thursday, June 8, 2023 from 9:00 – 1:00. $100.00
Yellow Group
Our Yellow level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Elementary B or Elementary C. Our Yellow level intensive meets five times a week from 9:00 – 1:00. Students will participate in Conditioning, Ballet, Pre-Pointe, Contemporary, Variations, Character, Dance Theory, and Choreography. Please bring your own lunch. $210.00
Orange Group
Our Orange level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Intermediate A or Intermediate B. Our Orange level intensive meets five times a week from 9:00 – 4:00. Students will participate in Conditioning, Ballet, Pre-Pointe/Pointe, Contemporary, Variations, Character, Dance Theory, and Choreography. Please bring your own lunch. $360.00
Red Group
Our Red level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Intermediate C, Advanced, and Pre-Professional. Our Red level intensive meets five times a week from 9:00 – 4:00. Students will participate in Conditioning, Ballet, Pointe, Contemporary, Variations, Character, Dance Theory, and Choreography. Please bring your own lunch. $360.00
Justin Rainey
Justin Rainey was raised in Fayetteville, Arkansas where he started his dance training at the age of 19 under Gail Leftwitch, while attending the University of Arkansas and graduating Magnum Cum Laude with a degree in Kinesiology. Starting his junior year Justin joined NWA Ballet Theatre under the direction of Emily Coen as an apprentice. After two seasons with the NWABT, Justin moved to Oklahoma and continued his dance training at the University of Oklahoma as a ballet major under the direction of Michael Bearden. There he had the privilege of performing works by George Balanchine, Alejandro Cerrudo, Merce Cunningham, William Christensen, Austin Hartel, Tommie-Waheed Evans and Roxanne Lyst. Following his time at OU, Justin rejoined NWA Ballet Theatre under the direction of David Justin as a company member for the 2020-21 season. Justin danced for one season with Dance Kaleidoscope in Indianapolis before moving to NYC where he currently lives and has had the opportunity to guest with companies such as Paul Taylor Dance Company and Nimbus.
Green Group (Ages 7 – 9)
Our Green level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Pre-Ballet 2 or Elementary A. Our Green level intensive meets twice a week from 9:00 – 1:00. Students will participate in conditioning, ballet, contemporary or character dancing, and choreography. Please bring your own lunch.
Tuesday, July 18, 2023 and Thursday, July 20, 2023 from 9:00 – 1:00. $100.00
Yellow Group
Our Yellow level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Elementary B or Elementary C. Our Yellow level intensive meets five times a week from 9:00 – 1:00. Students will participate in Conditioning, Ballet, Pre-Pointe, Contemporary, Variations, Character, Dance Theory, and Choreography. Please bring your own lunch. $210.00
Orange Group
Our Orange level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Intermediate A or Intermediate B. Our Orange level intensive meets five times a week from 9:00 – 4:00. Students will participate in Conditioning, Ballet, Pre-Pointe/Pointe, Contemporary, Variations, Character, Dance Theory, and Choreography. Please bring your own lunch. $360.00
Red Group
Our Red level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Intermediate C, Advanced, and Pre-Professional. Our Red level intensive meets five times a week from 9:00 – 4:00. Students will participate in Conditioning, Ballet, Pointe, Contemporary, Variations, Character, Dance Theory, and Choreography. Please bring your own lunch. $360.00
Israel Rodriguez
Born in Camaguey, Cuba, Israel Rodriguez began his classical ballet training at the age of eight at the famed Vocational Art School, where he won the school’s Best Performer Award in recognition of his critical command of requisite ballet skills. Israel began his professional dance career with the Ballet de Camaguey under the direction of Fernando Alonso, where he performed as a Soloist. His abilities earned him the opportunity to tour with the Ballet, and he performed in many different countries including Greece, Brazil, Japan, and Mexico. In 1994, Israel became a Principal dancer with Ballet de Monterrey in Mexico under the direction of Fernando Bujones.
Israel came to the United States in1998, performing with Ballet Theatre of Lexington for one season, followed by a year with Louisville Ballet in Kentucky. In 2000, he accepted a position with Orlando Ballet, where he performed as a Principal dancer until 2006.
As a Principal dancer and guest artist with more than 27 years of experience, Israel has received rave reviews from several arts critics and has been featured in publications including the Orlando Sentinel, Dance Magazine, Dance Spirit, and International Dance Magazine. Over his extensive professional dance career, Israel has performed Solo roles and as a Principal dancer in virtually all of the ballet classics including Coppelia, Don Quixote, Giselle, La Bayadere, La Fille Mal Gardee, Les Sylphides, Le Corsaire, Serenade, Napoli, Tarantella (Balanchine), Paquita, Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, Polovitzians Dances and The Nutcracker. Israel was the first male dancer in the United States to perform the full-length ballet Spartacus.
Israel also has had the opportunity to be a guest teacher and choreographer at Patel Conservatory, Pulse Dance Studio, 5D Dynasty Dance Center, Dance Center of Orlando, Momentum Live, Starz Dance Galaxy, Inwood Dance Company, Franceschi Art Academy, Art of Movement, Dance United of Orlando, Escuela Rusa de Ballet (Mexico), Pavlova Hippodrome (Mexico), Marycarmen Escuela de Danza (Mexico), Corpus Christi Concert Ballet, and Kosovo National Ballet Company, among others. He was invited to assist the Kosovo Ballet Company and their choreographers with their presentation of Fly to The Light. During his time working with the Company, he was also tasked with teaching the ballet troupe and enhancing their skills. He also serves as an ongoing guest dancer and choreographer for the Company in Kosovo, including productions of Don Quixote, Spartacus and Liria Ime (Mi Libertad). Earlier this year, Israel was recognized with the Outstanding Teacher award in the Youth American Grand Prix Semifinals.
Before joining Mobile Ballet as Ballet Master, Israel served as the Dance Program Director of Skyra Studios in Orlando, Florida. He continues traveling to dance and choreograph in Japan, Puerto Rico, Kosovo, Mexico, and throughout the United States.
Israel and his wife Katia Garza, Mobile Ballet’s Artistic and School Director, now call Mobile, Alabama their home.
Green Group (Ages 7 – 9)
Our Green level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Pre-Ballet 2 or Elementary A. Our Green level intensive meets twice a week from 9:00 – 1:00. Students will participate in conditioning, ballet, contemporary or character dancing, and choreography. Please bring your own lunch.
Tuesday, July 25, 2023 and Thursday, July 27, 2023 from 9:00 – 1:00. $100.00
Yellow Group
Our Yellow level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Elementary B or Elementary C. Our Yellow level intensive meets five times a week from 9:00 – 1:00. Students will participate in Conditioning, Ballet, Pre-Pointe, Contemporary, Variations, Character, Dance Theory, and Choreography. Please bring your own lunch. $210.00
Orange Group
Our Orange level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Intermediate A or Intermediate B. Our Orange level intensive meets five times a week from 9:00 – 4:00. Students will participate in Conditioning, Ballet, Pre-Pointe/Pointe, Contemporary, Variations, Character, Dance Theory, and Choreography. Please bring your own lunch. $360.00
Red Group
Our Red level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Intermediate C, Advanced, and Pre-Professional. Our Red level intensive meets five times a week from 9:00 – 4:00. Students will participate in Conditioning, Ballet, Pointe, Contemporary, Variations, Character, Dance Theory, and Choreography. Please bring your own lunch. $360.00
Theresa Bautista
A freelance dancer, choreographer and teacher in the Louisville, KY area, Theresa Bautista trained in Southern Indiana and Louisville where she gained experience in both dance and musical theatre. While earning her biology degree from Indiana University, she continued her dance studies in a program headed by Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux and Patricia McBride.
Theresa has performed with ICONography Dance, The Susie Thiel Collaborative, Anna Sapozhnikov’s MOYAMO DANCE, Gordon Dance Projects, Rachel James, jan street dance theatre, and Art! Art! Barking Dog Dance Company. Theresa is the founder and Co-Artistic Director of Moving Collective, a contemporary dance company in Louisville KY and has been hailed by the Louisville Courier Journal as “a delight to watch” and by Louisville Arts Review as “mesmerizing” on stage.
As a choreographer, she has created works for Centre College, Moving Collective, the University of Kentucky’s Department of Theatre and Dance, Berea College Modern Dance Troupe, the University of Louisville Dance Theatre, The Center for Women and Families, Empujon, Bluegrass Youth Ballet, the University of Kentucky Dance Ensemble and the Louisville Ballet Youth Ensemble. Her work Victims, received Gala honors at the Southeast Regional Ballet Festival and her work, Go Round, was showcased at the Regional Alternative Dance Festival in Kalamazoo, MI.
Green Group (Ages 7 – 9)
Our Green level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Pre-Ballet 2 or Elementary A. Our Green level intensive meets twice a week from 9:00 – 1:00. Students will participate in conditioning, ballet, contemporary or character dancing, and choreography. Please bring your own lunch.
Tuesday, August 1, 2023 and Thursday, August 3, 2023 from 9:00 – 1:00. $100.00
Yellow Group
Our Yellow level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Elementary B or Elementary C. Our Yellow level intensive meets five times a week from 9:00 – 1:00. Students will participate in Conditioning, Ballet, Pre-Pointe, Contemporary, Variations, Character, Dance Theory, and Choreography. Please bring your own lunch. $210.00
Orange Group
Our Orange level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Intermediate A or Intermediate B. Our Orange level intensive meets five times a week from 9:00 – 4:00. Students will participate in Conditioning, Ballet, Pre-Pointe/Pointe, Contemporary, Variations, Character, Dance Theory, and Choreography. Please bring your own lunch. $360.00
Red Group
Our Red level intensive is for BYB students currently enrolled in Intermediate C, Advanced, and Pre-Professional. Our Red level intensive meets five times a week from 9:00 – 4:00. Students will participate in Conditioning, Ballet, Pointe, Contemporary, Variations, Character, Dance Theory, and Choreography. Please bring your own lunch. $360.00
Blue Group
Our Blue level intensive is for current BYB students in our Pre-Professional level, BYB Alumni, or Professional dancers. Our Blue level intensive meets five times a week from 5:00 – 9:00 pm. Students will participate in Conditioning, Ballet, and Contemporary. $210.00