It’s the moms!

Owner Karen Willes started Carousel Dance Studio over 20 years ago and has seen the recital grow from a small production at a local high school to a professional program at a respected theater.

Although Karen and preschool director Michelle Marco are responsible for the choreography, Cindy Simoni runs the show backstage. Twelve years ago, Cindy enrolled her 3-year-old daughter in ballet and has been working backstage ever since. Today, she coordinates the backstage effort, managing over 400 dancers and 50 volunteer moms, some of whom work all three shows and have specialized responsibilities, such as doing buns, applying makeup, checking costumes, pinning in headpieces, and even sewing in a pinch.

One such mom is Lisa Schantz, who is responsible for the room filled with preschool and young school-aged dancers. She is helped by the class moms, volunteers who entertain the girls for the six hours they are backstage, taking them on bathroom breaks, ensuring nothing spills on their costumes or snags their tights, and lining them up properly when their turn on stage is announced.

These moms all have different reasons for getting involved, for giving up the chance to sit in the audience, beaming while watching their babies gracefully — or sometimes not so gracefully — prance across the stage in red velvet costumes, complete with beading and tutus. Some just aren’t ready to leave their little girls backstage alone. Others danced when they were young and hope to recapture a bit of the magic.

But Cindy and Lisa see this as a great way to stay connected.  Oftentimes, as girls enter adolescence, they also grow apart from mom, searching for some independence and a sense of self. But as Cindy points out, people are always telling parents to get involved in their children’s lives, and the recital “is such a wonderful way to stay involved. I get to know all of the girls, their families, and they all know me. I get to see what it’s like in their environment. I get to see them [her daughters] in action.”

Lisa also welcomes the opportunity to stay involved. Her 13-year-old daughter Amy started ballet at the tender age of 2. Lisa started as a class mom and, like Cindy, soon found herself taking on more and more responsibility.

“This is the most exhausting thing I do in my life, but I get so energized,” Lisa says. “When I watch them dance, I see them grow, and I see them gain self-confidence. They are so beautiful on stage. And I feel so good when I watch them.”

Lisa, a working parent, cannot do everything. But dancing is important to her daughter. Working the recital is a chance for them to bond, something often difficult for mothers and their teenaged daughters.

Perhaps Lisa says it best: “I love doing the recital. It’s our thing.”

©2003 Los Angeles Family Magazine

Reprinted with permission by Vickie Oddino and Los Angeles Family Magazine.  DanceMom.com thanks Ms. Oddino and Los Angeles Family Magazine for their kind cooperation and support.