Education & Enrichment
Education is a key component of the South Georgia Ballet’s mission!
Through classes, mini-performances, lecture/demonstrations, mainstage performances, and school workshops, SGB strives to educate both students and audiences in our area.
Through our Outreach Education Program, Step UP!, we offer free dance instruction in Colquitt and Thomas Counties. These classes are held in partnership with the Boys and Girls Club of Colquitt County, Marguerite Neel Williams Boys & Girls Club and Thomasville Community Resource Center for 2nd to 6th graders. Each year 80-100 area students have the opportunity to train and perform through this special Outreach Education program. Melissa June, Outreach Education Director, teaches all outreach classes.
SGB performs extensively throughout the region with mini-performances at area elementary schools, festivals and fundraising events, with two major ballets each year, touring performances, and school matinees, reaching an audience of nearly 24,000 annually.
SGB works with Hand-in-Hand, Thomas County Middle School, Scott Elementary School, Harper Elementary & Southside Elementary School to provide dance classes to children with Special Needs. Children come once a week to receive training in balance, coordination, rhythm, as well as working on gross and fine motor skills.
SGB partners with CASA and NECCO to provide foster children the opportunity to experience the magic of dance with their peers at no cost to them. Children in this program stay completely anonymous to teachers and peers as we want them to feel included and not labeled. They also get the opportunity to dance in the spring show in beautiful costumes and on the big stage. This program provides a sense of stability for the child and is a place where they feel love and belonging.
SGB has also partnered with Thomasville Center for the Arts to provide the Seniors in our Community the ability to move and express themselves through dance.
The official school of South Georgia Ballet is South Georgia Ballet School. For the serious student, the Ballet Company offers additional training and performing opportunities. Company dancers are required to continue taking regular classes with the School and receive additional training in their Company level classes. SGBS provides dance instruction to children ages 2 & up in preparation for Company auditions. Training includes ballet, pointe, contemporary, jazz, tap, musical theater and acro. These classes are taught by professional staff in a compassionate and disciplined environment.
Education is the cornerstone of South Georgia Ballet’s mission!
South Georgia Ballet in the Community
“This non-profit has made a powerful impact in the area of their Outreach Education Program. My daughter was introduced to Step Up Program with SGB over 7 years ago, and she is now a Senior Level Dancer – without their partnership with Boys & Girls Club and Resource Center my Daughter would not have afforded the opportunity to be introduced to the Art of Dance (Ballet). Mrs. Melissa took her in with no prior dance experienced and offered an opportunity to learn and achieve new heights through dance. Please nominate SGB because each year they work on limited funds, yet some way they achieve Outreach far greater than I could have imagine by offering dance to Special Needs , and Foster youth. To be a recipient of these scholarships for outreach classes build character within our future leaders of tomorrow, the students that are blessed to receive this gift like my daughter, not only come away with an extended dance family, they learn self-discipline, how to have priorities, Efficiency, team work, and so much more. SGB Outreach is not just cliche it has PURPOSE FOR OUR COMMUNITY!
The mission of South Georgia Ballet is to enrich the quality of life in southwest Georgia by expanding the cultural opportunities available to all its youth. The term enrich means to enhance, or perhaps improve make richer, SGB is not just raising up dancers to perform, they are improving each dancer by strengthening their qualities from within… For example I personally know my daughter team work skills are more advanced at the age of 15 due to SGB because in dance everything is team achievement no big I’s and little U’s . My daughter has learned through SGB how to embrace her Co-Dancers and celebrate them regardless of race. SGB is a Unified Organization from the Dancers to the Parents Everyone is welcome to volunteer and Everyone is expected to Respect Each Other at all times… Our community could stand to learn from SGB in the area of Unity and Respect. SGB is an example of how to enrich the quality of life in Thomasville and surrounding towns.” — Felicia Morris, Mother of Outreach Student