History

Bright

Brighton Ballet Theater was founded in 1987 by Jewish-Ukrainian immigrant Irina Roizin, who had dreamed since childhood of teaching children to dance. Her dream became a reality in the heart of South Brooklyn in the Brighton Beach neighborhood of New York City. In a small studio, the first ballet class was taught to five young girls and the school quickly blossomed to fifty students. Within a year more than a hundred students of various backgrounds attended BBT.

Irina studied character, folk dance and acrobatics in Ukraine under Mikhail Krichevets, People's Artist of the USSR, at the Children Performing Arts School in Ukraine. She was a soloist at the Ukrainian National Folk Dance Company "Unost" for four years and a soloist for four years at the Ukrainian National Folk Dance Company "Mria”In America her passion for dance was rekindled as she began to train with two sisters- recent immigrants to NYC, Rona and Galina Rybak, who had learned the art of ballet from the renowned Agrippina Vaganova (1879-1951). Vaganova developed a unique and effective method of training a classical dancer filled with poetic spirituality. She developed a fusion of ballet techniques that combined elements of French, Italian, and earlier Russian styles, and a method to teach ballet in an organized progressive way. Considered excellent, the method is the most common ballet teaching method worldwide.

Boundless

Irina, Galina, and Rona combined their skills and experience, and created a unique method for working with children as young as two-and-a-half years old. Proven effective, this methodology assists children in gaining control over their body, prepares them mentally, as well as physically, for dance classes where children enter the world of ballet through their imagination. Irina, Galina and Rona’s skills and experience created a unique method for working with young dancers. Irina continues developing new teachers, honing the curriculum and methodology used both at BBT and in public school partnerships and for children with special needs.

Timeless

As the school's popularity grew further, and the number of students increased to over four hundred, the very best teachers, dancers, and choreographers were selected. They brought to BBT invaluable experience from the finest international ballet schools and colleges, and most prestigious world ballet companies. Over the years, BBT has witnessed thousands of students grow exponentially in their personal lives. Some of them have become professional dancers, some now study at specialized schools and colleges, while others have utilized their dance education as a creative foundation for other careers.

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