The students at Escuela Waldorf Micael were ready to plié, pirouette, and jeté when Trifecta Arts, a nonprofit on a mission to bring the arts to underserved communities worldwide, arrived on their doorstep to turn up the dance heat in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico! From September 2021 to May 2022, free weekly ballet classes were added to the curriculum of this small elementary school, and boy, did the kids have a blast!
But there was a twist – these weren’t your average classrooms. The dance space was none other than…a yurt!
That’s right, these budding ballerinas and danseurs were taking their pliés and pirouettes to the next level, twirling in the comfort of breezy, circular yurts. Dancing in a yurt is so much better than dancing in the dirt, right?
The program catered to two age groups – first graders and second/third graders. The first-grade class had seven little dudes and one lucky lady, while the second and third grade group had a dozen giggling girls and one fearless boy. The students were enthusiastic about their ballet classes, which allowed them to develop their creativity and express themselves through movement. Every Friday, they gathered in their yurts, ready to dance their hearts out and soak up every bit of knowledge that their teacher, Anne Koho, had to offer.
Ms. Koho, the founder of Trifecta Arts, is a ballerina through and through. She started studying ballet at the Columbia City Ballet in South Carolina when she was just six years old, and later graduated from the University of Iowa with a degree in business and a minor in dance. But instead of keeping her love of dance to herself, she has dedicated herself to bringing the beauty and benefits of ballet to kids all over the world. With 20+ years of teaching experience in the US and over 14,000 student hours of free ballet lessons in several countries, she’s a seasoned pro when it comes to sharing her love of dance with kids all over the world.
Thanks to Trifecta Arts, dancing in a yurt has become the new standard for these young dancers, and we can’t wait to see where their love of dance takes them next!
