The Southwest Ballet Theatre, located in Avondale, has launched its new adaptive dance program.

The first of its kind in the Southwest Valley, the class mirrors the successful program introduced by Boston Ballet.

The program is specifically designed for children aged 5-17 with special needs and will not only teach students ballet techniques and certain ballet exercises, but will also encourage creative movement and improvisation to encourage the expression of self and joy while focusing on bilateral coordination, balance and rhythm.

“When I saw that Boston Ballet was offering a teacher certification for adaptive dance, I had no hesitation in inviting our teachers to participate,” said Tasha Sramecki, Artistic Director of Southwest Ballet Theater (SWBT).

“The more we can touch our community with the gift of dance, the more we fulfill our mission to touch lives in the West Valley with the beauty and grace of ballet. Quite simply, the world is a better place when we all dance. Dance elevates the spirit and transcends the body.

As a certified adaptive dance teacher, Sydney Walker will lead the inaugural SWBT adaptive dance program alongside Melissa Marshall, youth physiotherapist and longtime dancer with SWBT.

In addition to the adaptive dance program, SWBT is expanding its community reach by offering open day classes with homeschooled families in mind.

The open class format will provide both primary and beginner ballet instruction to homeschool families who wish to add the beauty and expression of ballet to their home study program.

The new adaptive program was supposed to start last year, but is now kicking off at Estrella Mountain Community College after SWBT finally recovered from the effects of COVID-19.

The goal of the program is to provide opportunities for students with special needs and their parents to have special attention classes where children can receive a specific type of education to accommodate them.

“Dancing is great for all students, children and adults. It’s good for your emotional well-being, psychological well-being, and physical well-being. The more people who can come out and be able to participate in this, it makes our community stronger and a better place,” Sramecki said.

“We’re just bringing it to as many people as possible within our means and our structure, and we’d like to be able to grow more every year. It was a way that we could expand in a way and reach the wider community to include as many people as possible. We wanted to add this adaptive dance so that students who need a little extra attention or the occupational therapy aspect can get it the right way,” a- she added.

The certification process to teach the Adaptive Dance program covered different types of disabilities and teaching approaches, while also focusing on students’ love of dance.

“We focused on teaching dancers to find that joy and that expression, because we want them to really love what they do and find that love for dance. The training was really this all-encompassing program where I got to learn a full experience,” Walker said.

For the adaptive program, students will have the opportunity to perform in the recitals presented by the theater.

Walker said that by keeping children and their needs in mind when designing the classroom, she is excited to see their performance and growth while providing the community with an opportunity to witness it as well.

“What I’ve always loved to see is how at Southwest Ballet Theater we’ve had dancers, big and small, and it’s always been a classy community show. We are now reaching the point of being more inclusive.

“I’m excited to see this because we’ll be able to really engage everyone in our classes and our performances, and I feel like we’ve come full circle in delivering on our mission. I’m thrilled to see that come to light here, because we’re finally able to make it happen.

For more information, visit swbtballet.org.