A group of young dancers from Marblehead and nearby communities recently stepped onto an international stage for the first time, representing the Coastline Ballet Center at the prestigious Youth America Grand Prix.
The Marblehead-based ballet school, now celebrating its fifth year, sent a team of nine dancers ages 10 to 17 to perform at the competition’s Boston-area semifinal at the end of March. The students — from Marblehead, Beverly and Lynn — spent the past six months preparing, adding extra training hours to their already demanding class schedules.
Founded by former professional dancers and Marblehead residents Jessica Kreyer and Pavel Gurevich, Coastline Ballet Center offers dance training for students ages 3 and up and emphasizes a supportive, high-level educational environment.
Kreyer previously served as principal of the North Shore studio for Boston Ballet School, while Gurevich was a principal dancer with Boston Ballet and now teaches in its pre-professional programs at Walnut Hill School for the Arts.
The Youth America Grand Prix, widely considered one of the world’s leading ballet competitions, connects young dancers with scholarships, training opportunities and exposure to professional companies. Each year, it hosts workshops, master classes and competitions across the United States and internationally.
For the Coastline dancers, the experience meant months of rigorous preparation. Students continued their regular training — about 11 hours of classes each week over four days — and added roughly three extra hours of focused rehearsal to refine their technique and artistry.
The effort paid off. Marblehead’s Maxim Gurevich, a fifth grader at The Village School, earned a Top 24 placement in the event’s pre-competitive division.
Other Coastline Ballet Center competitors included Eloise Baron of Tower School; Eloise Gummere of Veterans Middle School; Cornelia Sollins of Waring School; Lilya Gurevich, Darien Horvath and Arden Ward of Marblehead High School; Anna Dobkowski of Beverly High School; and Danielle Nalesnik of Bishop Fenwick High School.
For Kreyer and Gurevich, competitions like the Youth America Grand Prix are familiar territory. During their professional careers, both taught master classes and served as judges at international competitions. Kreyer won the Carey Rose Winski Scholarship competition, while Gurevich twice competed in the renowned USA International Ballet Competition — often described as the “Olympics of ballet” — advancing to the finals.
But this year marked a special milestone: seeing their own students take the stage together for the first time.
“It was an incredible experience for the dancers,” Kreyer said, noting that the competition offered the students valuable exposure and inspiration as they continue their training.
