On June 2, 2024 at 2:30 p.m., I hope to see you at the Greenville Municipal Theater to experience what can only be described as charming.
When you’re in the audience watching the ProviDance Performing Arts Center’s production of Encanto, and I fully expect you to be, you are going to be among the most talented young dancers in Texas.
I joined this cast in September with very limited ballet experience thinking I had signed up for an all-ages beginner ballet class. I found out quickly I was dancing not only with children, but with children who have been accepted to train at Joffrey and Alvin Ailey pre-professional programs. These dancers, ages 6 - 17, are unspeakably talented. In addition to their academics and extra curriculars, they are learning and mastering complex combinations and vocabulary, teaching each other (and me!), and extending grace and kindness to everyone on the skills spectrum. Emma, 10, cheers me on and congratulates me when I nail a turn. Avery, 7, does not hesitate to pull me out of class to make sure I understand the choreography we're learning. They are professional, confident, talented, and brave.
Miss Victoria Bengard Souder, our choreographer and director, has the nearly impossible task of teaching a wide range of skills across a wider range of ages. In one class, you'll hear Miss Victoria correcting posture and turn out, telling the littles to get their fingers out of their noses, the teens to fix their faces (“no one cares how pretty your leaps are if your face is boring!”), teaching the history of the art these children all share, reinforcing etiquette and vocabulary, preparing them for competition and auditions, asking a dancer where her left ballet shoe is, putting 15 heads of hair in buns, helping the teens get their extensions higher, the adults to stop wearing their shoulders as earrings, all while teaching us all the same complex combinations. She holds the 6-year-olds to the caliber of the 17-year-olds. She holds the 17-year-olds to the foundations of the 6-year-olds. She doesn't laugh when this nearly 40-year-old dancer "ooofs" herself up out of a plie. She does, however, yell at me over the music sometimes. “Brittany, stop watching the ballet! YOU’RE IN IT!”
This cast of 40 dancers started rehearsing back in September 2023. At that time, Miss Victoria planned to choreograph Beauty and the Beast but ultimately reconsidered after her assistant told her she dreamed they did Encanto. “I originally didn’t think about it as an option, but then I thought about how vibrant and colorful it could be. The dancers were so upset. I thought they were going to be excited about it, but when I told them, they all started sobbing.”
Julia Viquez, 16, who dances the role of Louisa, confirmed. “We were so excited to do Beauty and the Beast and we CRIED when she told us we’d be doing Encanto instead. CRIED.”
The development of this ballet was not without more tears. Dancers shared that learning this choreography was rather challenging. Josh Masters, 14, who dances the roles of Bruno, Felix, and Young Abuelo (hey, boys, we need more male dancers in class!) lifts six different girls throughout the show. Miss Victoria noted that these are not simple pas de deux (partner scenes). “Some of the pas de deux surprised me. They do a bunch of big lifts that are super advanced. I was really hoping they’d get them, but I wasn’t expecting them to. They are honestly doing very high caliber lifts.”
For those who have seen the movie, you are certainly familiar with how magical, and vibrant, and colorful Encanto is. The work these dancers have put in to perform this live is its own kind of magic. Marlie Leathers, 16, who dances the role of Julieta, shares that the party scenes were challenging to learn. “They have a lot of pointe work and so many turns.” For those unfamiliar with the art, dancing en pointe means the dancer is LITERALLY DANCING ON THE TIP OF HER TOES, creating an illusion of floating on air. Alyssa Suzao, 15, who dances the role of Camillo, says that her hardest scene was The Dysfunctional Tango. “We started learning this choreography late at night and I had already been dancing for hours. This specific scene has so many detailed parts.” These dancers are in class anywhere from 10-16 hours a week.
Outside of the studio, these dancers have incredible aspirations for life after Encanto. Many of your main cast members have dance career plans: Sophie Carrera, 16 who plays the role of Isabella, wants to pursue dancing, acting, and singing in New York City. She also teaches at PPAC and choreographed the rat scene. Alyssa wants to travel and teach dance before studying psychology, “because mental health matters,” she says. Makayla Brooke, 20, who plays the role of Abuela currently teaches dance at another studio. Piper Jackson, 15, who dances the role of Young Abuela, wants to choreograph for musical theater. This will be apparent when you see her perform. I don’t want to give away one of the big surprises, but one of her favorite scenes is her opening solo.
Front to Back: Sophie Carrera, Elise Hilferty, Cole Edelhauser, Kyndall Cook, Zach Hahn, Josh Masters, Victoria Souder
Others have plans outside of dance. Julia wants to be a travel nurse. Josh, a paleontologist. Marlie is passionate about science and Zach Hahn, 17, who plays the role of Mariano is interested in tech security.
Before the curtain closes on this production and the cast makes their way in the world, there is a lot they want you to experience. They are almost unanimously excited for you to see “We Don’t Talk About Bruno.” Elise Hilferty, 17, who plays the role of Pepa, says “it is such an exciting end to the first act. There is so much emotion and energy and it’s all over the place.” Her sister, Victoria Hilferty, 15, who plays the role of Dolores agrees. “It’s the most fun because everyone knows this song. It’s also super complex choreography with opportunity to improv.” Miss Victoria loves this dance, too. “Even if you’ve never seen Encanto, you’ve heard this song. It was fun to choreograph because there’s so much you can do with the background music and all the different characters. They’re all singing their own parts to tell the story.”
When you’re in the audience, you’ll spend most of your time with Sarah Carrera, 14, who dances the role of Mirabel. Sarah takes the responsibility of the main character seriously and professionally; she has learned nearly 2 hours of choreography on top of the hours of work she puts in for competitions and auditions. Over the last nine months, I’ve witnessed her grow not only in her role and as a dancer, but also as a young woman establishing her position in this world. She is a humble leader in our class, takes the time out of her own learning to teach me when I have questions, and has, as of recently, had no problem telling the older dancers to pipe down and pay attention. While I have been rehearsing with Sarah for 9 months, you’ll have no trouble believing you’re watching Mirabel for 2 hours.
There is just so much to love about this show. Miss Victoria invites you to pay attention to the details. “Even though the main characters have their choreography, there is so much going on in the background. It’s not just about who is center stage at that moment, it’s about the whole picture.”
Folks, please join us on June 2 for this enchanting performance. Shaylin Nimley, 10, who dances the role of Antonio and is every bit as charming as her character, is very excited for this show. “If the audience wants to get up and dance in the seats or aisles, they should do that. AND! And come to the studio! Come take a class!”
Main Cast
Mirabel: Sarah Carrera, 14, Joffrey Ballet
Isabella: Sophie Carrera, 16, Joffrey Ballet
Louisa: Julia Viquez, 16
Bruno/ Young Abuelo/ Felix: Josh Masters, 14
Pepa: Elise Hilferty, 17
Julieta: Marlie Leathers,16, Joffrey Ballet
Old Abuela: Makayla Brooke, 20
Young Abuela: Piper Jackson, 15
Agustin: Brooklynne Trammell, 16
Dolores: Victoria Hilferty, 15, Joffrey Ballet
Camillo: Alyssa Suzao, 16, Alvin Ailey Ballet
Antonio: Shaylin Nimley, 10
Mariano: Zachary Hahn, 17
