KCB's Outreach Programs Inspire More Than Just Dance
by Erica Hochstedler

	Ciara Brown

One student's journey through ROAD (Reach Out And Dance) and Project X (EXposure to the Arts) helped encourage her to pursue a dream she may never have considered. That dream is to one day become a fashion designer. The young fashion designer hopeful is Ciara Brown, currently a senior at Cristo Rey High School.  She has been lucky enough to participate in two of the outreach programs that Kansas City Ballet offers.

Ciara's first encounter with KCB was when she was in 4th grade and the ROAD program came to her school (Allen-Edison School in the former KCB home, Westport-Allen Center). She remembers ROAD as something that was required, like ballet and gym all in one. She doesn't have the best recollection of those fourth grade days, but definitely remembers Ms. Martin playing the piano. Ms. Linda Martin is the Director of Community Outreach at the Kansas City Ballet and never forgot working with Ciara as a young girl either. A few years down the road, as a freshman, Ciara was chosen to participate in the Project X program. Both Ciara and Ms. Martin had to do a double take when they saw one another again, then realized they knew each other from way back when!

Ciara knows she was very lucky to be a part of both programs. When asked about what she found the most valuable from the programs she said, "I probably wouldn't have been open to the arts." She even went to Ailey Camp to learn more dance from ballet, to tap, to jazz and at the end performed at the Lyric Theater. Then, Ciara got even more involved as a member of Project X when she served as an usher for one of Kansas City Ballet's performances. Attending ballet and dance performances for Ciara is something she enjoys because it makes her feel "serene and peaceful."

Project X inevitably opens doors and windows to other worlds within the arts as many dance productions are a result of collaborations among lighting designers, costume designers and set designers, just to name a few. Ciara says that being a part of such a strong arts outreach program "pushed me more into the fashion design world...Project X has opened my eyes to a lot of things." Because she was granted a peek through a door into the arts, Ciara is now looking to go to the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in California. What a dream! She explains, "First of all it [Project X] is a very, very good learning experience...it broadens your imagination, you probably learn something that you never thought you would have learned." And without even being asked whether she would do it again, she says, "I wish I could do it again.

Return to Feature Stories