In its most ambitious production to date, the Brevard Ballet Youth Company staged Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake at the Maxwell C. King Center — with more than 150 locally trained dancers and the Space Coast Symphony Orchestra performing live.
It is the summit of the classical repertoire — and in the spring of 2025, the Brevard Ballet Youth Company reached it. The company presented Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake on the grand stage of the Maxwell C. King Center for the Performing Arts in Melbourne, in what stands as one of the most ambitious pre-professional ballet productions ever mounted in Brevard County.
A Landmark Collaboration with Live Orchestra
The production was billed as the inaugural collaborative performance between the Brevard Ballet Youth Company and the Space Coast Symphony Orchestra — meaning the dancers performed to Tchaikovsky’s sweeping score played live, a rare and thrilling experience for a youth company. Staged by BBA founder and artistic director Elena Shokhina, the production featured more than 150 locally trained dancers in elaborate costumes across the full four acts.
The Story of Swan Lake
Swan Lake tells of Prince Siegfried, who falls in love with Odette, a princess transformed into a swan by the sorcerer Von Rothbart’s curse. At a grand ball, Rothbart’s daughter Odile — the Black Swan — impersonates Odette to deceive the prince. The dual role of Odette/Odile, traditionally danced by a single ballerina, is one of the most demanding in all of ballet, culminating in Odile’s famous 32 fouetté turns.
The ballet is beloved for its ensemble as much as its principals: the shimmering corps of swans, the beloved “Dance of the Little Swans” (the four cygnets), and the vivid national dances — Spanish, Hungarian, Neapolitan, and Mazurka — of the third act. Bringing all of this to life requires exactly the depth of trained dancers the academy has developed over the past decade.
Brevard County’s Own on the King Center Stage
While guest artists lend polish, the heart of the King Center production was the academy’s own dancers. Havi showcased her versatility in both the intricate Dance of the Little Swans and the elegant Pas de Trois, and longtime company dancer Isabella “Bella,” a member of the youth company since 2018, took featured roles — the payoff of years of disciplined training on one of ballet’s greatest stages.
The Company’s First Swan Lake, in 2022
The 2025 King Center staging was not the company’s first encounter with this masterpiece. The Brevard Ballet Youth Company first mounted Swan Lake in 2022, led by standout ballerina Vivien in the demanding dual role of Odette/Odile — the White Swan and the Black Swan in one — with Taylor and Alexandria as the commanding Big Swans and the four cygnets danced by Carolina, Shalom, Maggie, and Sophia. Returning to the ballet in 2025 with a full live orchestra was a measure of just how far the company had grown in three years.
A Milestone for Brevard County Ballet
Presenting a full-length Swan Lake with a live orchestra on the King Center stage is a landmark achievement for pre-professional ballet in the region — the kind of experience normally reserved for major-city companies. It is a testament to the vision of the Brevard Ballet Youth Company and the community that supports it. See the full history on our productions page.
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