Tiffany Rea-Fisher, far left, poses with Lake Placid School of Dance graduating students Annalise Dramm and Lillian TullerUss and LPSD Administrator Madelyn LaLonde. (Provided photo — Naj Wikoff)

On Sunday, June 4, the Lake Placid School of Dance held its annual spring recital to a packed house at the Lake Placid Center for the Arts.

This year’s recital was filled with emotion as it featured the moving on of two seniors, Annalise Dramm and Lillian TullerUss, who will be leaving the company as they go on to college and the conclusion of Tiffany Rea-Fisher’s five-year stint of directing the school. Further, there was the emotion of watching so many dancers from pre-school through high school giving their absolute best to the cheering audience.

Some moments put one’s heart in one’s throat, such as seeing one dancer take a hard fall, then quickly get up and smoothly back into the movement like a pro though the pain was clearly on her face as she and her ensemble finished their piece, took their bows, and left the stage. Another heart stopper was a sprite of a dancer, who performed earlier and now, still in costume in the audience with her parents, took a long stem rose onto the stage to give to another she admired.

Evident throughout was how the dancers, no matter their age, did their best, paying close attention to others on stage, the music and, at times, signals from their teachers in the wings. Also apparent was the amount of talent and heart on stage witnessed by an audience beaming with pride, with many members holding bundles of flowers to pass on at the performance end.

The recital also reflected how valuable the support generated over the years by Joy to the Children, the LPCA’s members and sponsors, and the generosity of EMERGE125, a New York City-based, internationally acclaimed dance company, whose dancers and leader — Rea-Fisher — traveled up to teach the kids alongside local dance instructors. The kids benefited by training under the guidance of many working professional dancers, a rarity for a rural performing art center.

Young dancers perform during a recital Sunday, June 4 at the Lake Placid Center for the Arts. (Provided photo — Naj Wikoff)

Recognizing the collective value that the School of Dance provided, parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, and some great-grandparents ensured their young talents could get to their dance classes regularly.

Doug Haney of Saranac Lake was one. A father of a 10-year-old dancer now in her second year of dance, he believes that getting her to the dance studio on time is well worth the effort.

“Participating in the dance classes provides my daughter absolute Joy,” said Haney. “I am now firmly convinced that we’re going to be a ‘Nutcracker’ family for as long as she wants to dance.”

Haney feels his daughter gets more out of the dance instruction than actually dancing, as she now desires to get better at whatever she takes on. Haney praised the quality of the instructors and the LPCA for making the classes affordable to many people.

“We saw dance as something fun for our daughter to do, and it helped her because she’s in physical and recreational therapy,” said Megan Holzer of Wilmington. “Dance is a fun way for her to do her therapy; she gets joy out of it.”

Dancers Ruby Smith of Saranac Lake and Muire Bombeck of Plattsburgh (Provided photo — Naj Wikoff)

“She’s doing great; we’re incredibly proud,” said dad Brian Holzer. “It’s tough at times scheduling the classes in, but as long as the kids have fun, it’s worth it.

Muire Bombeck, a dancer from Plattsburgh who performs in the annual “Nutcracker,” came to cheer on her young fellow dancers. Bombeck got into dance when she was about three when her parents enrolled her in a dance class.

“My parents had said that when I was little, I’d dance around the house, so they enrolled me in the class to give me something to do and possibly to keep me from knocking over the furniture,” said Bombeck. “I found dance to be a great way to express oneself, and it provided me with an outlet and the ability to express myself through learning the techniques. I plan to continue dancing throughout college, and after that, we’ll see.”

“I felt that Placid was the place for me after taking classes all over the region for several years,” said departing senior Lillian TullerUss, of Ausable.

TullerUss said another dancer’s parent encouraged her to consider studying with Rea-Fisher and EMERGE 125.

“After one class, I was convinced,” said TullerUss. “I like that all the teachers are dance professionals because you can learn from what they are saying and doing. You learn the little things you can absorb from them; they know what it’s like to be a professional dancer. Plus, they are always there for us no matter what we need.”

“I started with EMERGE 125 four years ago,” said departing senior Annalise Dramm of Saranac Lake. “It’s been an amazing experience. I like the freedom of dance; it’s a great way to express yourself creatively and, physically, athletically. The teachers are amazing. If there is something you want to do, they’ll help you get there.”

Both students plan to continue dancing in college, though Dramm desires a career in journalism, with dance becoming more of a creative pastime. Though TullerUss, will be taking a double major in international relations and political science, as her college will be in New York City, she hopes to continue taking classes with EMERGE if possible.

Madelyn LaLonde, the dance school administrator, said it’s very fulfilling seeing the growth of all the students, both as dancers and maturing young people, becoming themselves through dance. For Rea-Fisher, now in her 20th year partnering with the LPCA, continuing to lead the dance school was more than she can handle as she takes on the role of director of the Adirondack Diversity Initiative, but her work with EMERGE will continue.

“It’s very bittersweet,” said Rea-Fisher. “It’s been very wonderful, and I am very proud of what we’ve been able to do, but there have been lots of hugs and tears. I will miss the students. Lake Placid has always been a pocket of talent; you must be patient enough to nurture it.”

For proof, there’s graduate Julliane Dechavez, now dancing with the professional division of the Alley Company School in New York.

“I learned so much from Tiffany and the members of her company,” said Dechavez. “They changed everything for me. They and all the teachers at the Lake Placid school are so supportive. It’s fantastic.”

The Lake Placid School for Dance is in skillful hands as longtime faculty member Alice Schonbek takes the baton from Rea-Fisher and recruits talented faculty to carry the program forward.

(Naj Wikoff lives in Keene Valley. He has been covering events for the Lake Placid News for more than 15 years.)