Peconic Ballet Theatre in Riverhead will showcase the talents of its students in a Blank Canvas performance open to the entire community on Saturday, Jan. 25.
There are three time slots at the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center, 76 Main St., starting with the youngest dancers at noon, followed by middle schoolers at 2 p.m. and high school students at 6 p.m.
Owner and director Christiana Bitonti-Fisher started the Blank Canvas performances almost as soon as she launched her school about 12 years ago. While the theater has other shows, like its traditional Nutcracker as well as spring and winter ballets, Blank Canvas is uniquely designed so that "the stage is the canvas, and the students are the ones who paint it with their different costumes and their movements."
But even those costumes are not glittering, nor is the scenery loud—just a black-and-white motif to prioritize motion.
"Art is intended to be exposed, not hidden, and the dancers are the true spotlight of the entire performance in their own movement," showing their technique and talent, Bitonti-Fisher told South Shore Press.
January’s Blank Canvas will present the students at this year’s first semester of learning, while the final Blank Canvas performance in June will illustrate their growth.
"Blank Canvas for me really celebrates the dancer as an artist, and that was kind of my goal, because we do so many shows, which are so fun and I love them, but then it’s really nice to do a show that truly showcases exactly what dance is and the art for art’s sake," she said.
She noted that each genre of dance reflects a designated artist, such as A Night at the Opera for the ballet portion, and Imagine Dragons for contemporary dance, as the performance aims to offer "something for everybody."
Choreographing these shows is one of the loves of her life, and staging performances gives her the opportunity to pursue that passion. Though she danced professionally at one point, Bitonti-Fisher knew in college that she might want to teach others instead of performing for a career. She pursued an undergraduate degree in psychology from St. Joseph’s College in Patchogue, followed by a post-graduate degree in counseling from New York University.
"It was definitely my first passion, working with students," she said.
Her dual educational path, which always prioritized dance, enabled Bitonti-Fisher to teach her students not only an art form but also essential life skills. She focuses on building confidence through the 'I can do it' mentality.
For Bitonti-Fisher, just as important as learning to lace ballet slippers is understanding that “through dedication and hard work,” as well as persistence, children can find success.
Building on this idea, she said, "When people have an investment in something like that, great things can happen for them." She explained that many of their programs are goal-driven, allowing kids to learn the steps, feel good about themselves, and return the next day ready to apply what they've learned.
As a Long Island native who often had to take lessons in New York City, Bitonti-Fisher also made it a goal to create a professional dance studio and environment on the East End.
"That's where it all started, and to this day, we offer professional dance classes in multiple styles of dance genres for all students. We have students that are there six days a week taking multiple classes, and we have students that may be there one day a week taking ballet or just hip-hop, but they're all getting that same training," she said of the classes that start at age 3 and continue through adulthood.
Her advice to students: "Take it step by step, enjoy the process and the benefits."
Peconic Ballet Theatre offers dance classes through the Peconic Valley Foundation for the underserved community. For the third year, the theater is partnering with the Southampton Youth Bureau to provide affordable dance and performance opportunities.
Bitonti-Fisher said the nonprofit’s goal is to make dance and art accessible to everyone, while maintaining the “caliber and the professionalism that it deserves."
Tickets for the Blank Canvas shows are priced at $34.60 and can be purchased on the Peconic Ballet Theatre website.