Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Former Russian ballet dancers open local studio
En pointe: Couple offers ‘world class’ training for area dancers
WEST POTTSGROVE » Tucked away in the Stowe Crossing Shopping Center on Benjamin Franklin Highway is Dance International Studio — a dance school owned by husband and wife and internationally known ballet dancers Andrei Ustinov and Elena Martinson.
The pair, originally from Russia, has traveled the world as members of several ballet companies including the Kirov Ballet, as freelance performers, teachers and choreographers. Now, beginner and advanced ballet dance students from across the region have the opportunity to study locally with the pair.
Dance International Studio, located at 1646 West High Street, has been open since February. The studio offers classical ballet training for beginner, intermediate and advanced ballet dancers, as well as classes in pointe (beginner and advanced), character dancing, adult ballet and a hiphop class.
Ustinov said the school offers students not just dance training but a cultural experience where the students also discuss music and other types of art.
“Dance is not only about your body — it’s also about your brain,” Ustinov said.
That experience was important to Heidi Rochlin of Reading, who has four children studying with Ustinov and Martinson.
“My husband and I are musicians, and it was really important for us to bring our children to a place where we knew professionals were teaching,” she said. “There are a lot of studios around where the kids can go and they can jump around and have a good time, but they’re not really getting good ballet training. That makes a difference for us — knowing they have travelled the world and performed,” she said.
It’s been a long journey from Russia to West Pottsgrove for
“Ballet is good for physical and psychological development. We teach young students because they are material in your hands and you’re able to create the future.” — Andrei Ustinov, owner, Dance International Studio
Ustinov and Martinson — both literally and figuratively.
Ustinov and Martinson were born and raised in St. Petersburg, Russia. Both are graduates of the renowned Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet in St. Petersburg, which was founded in 1738. Among the school’s alumni are Anna Pavlova, George Balanchine, Rudolf Nureyev and Michail Baryshnikov.
“It is the best known dance academy in world history,” Ustinov said in a recent interview at the studio. Ustinov graduated from the academy in 1974, while Martinson graduated in 1982.
Martinson said that while they auditioned for the academy, it wasn’t important if a prospective student had previous training.
“You have to audition, but it’s not absolutely that you dance or not, they choose you because of your physical ability,” Martinson said.
“They teach you to become dancers,” Ustinov added.
Ustinov and Martinson began their professional dance careers with the Kirov Ballet. In October 1987, while touring with the Moscow Ballet, Ustinov defected in Dallas, Texas — seeking asylum in the U.S.
Following his defection, Ustinov became principal guest artist for the Dallas Ballet. In 1989, he joined the London City Ballet.
Martinson moved to the U.S. in 1990 and began dancing with Ustinov that same year. They danced together for a season with the Fort Worth Ballet in Texas, before launching worldwide freelance careers as dance partners, teachers, coaches and choreographers. Ustinov became a U.S. citizen in 1999, Martinson in 2001.
So how did the couple, which still lives in Philadelphia, decide to open a school in West Pottsgrove?
The couple has been teaching in the Philadelphia region since 2003, including as adjunct faculty at Temple University.
Martinson said someone made a suggestion that they look at the West Pottsgrove property — which was empty and had been used as a dance studio previously.
Ustinov said the 2,200 square-foot studio was a “fantastic space, with beautiful equipment.”
The school currently has about 20 students, including several that have been dancing under Ustinov and Martinson for several years.
“Ballet is good for physical and psychological development. We teach young students because they are material in your hands and you’re able to create the future,” Ustinov said.
“They are like a sponge,” Martinson added.
Rochlin said the teachers help the students understand that they need to work hard, “and realize that if they want to become better dancers they have to focus, listen and be able to take criticism constructively.”
Ustinov said ballet provides universal training that can help students who may be involved in other sports or activities.
Christy Morrison’s 9-year-old twin sons John and Joseph Ryan both study at Dance International Studio. John has been a student of Ustinov and Martinson for the past three years. Morrison said her son loves dance, and adds that she has noticed an improvement in his baseball playing over the past couple of years.
“He’s a catcher, and it has improved his legs and his coordination on the field. People will say to me, ‘what does your son do — what do you feed him?’ And it’s really the dance that has helped,” she said.
Joseph Ryan enjoys the hip-hop class, taught by student teacher Jenna Balog. Morrison said that class has helped improve her son’s coordination and discipline.
Morrison adds the dance training has given son John “an edge in strength and
overall coordination and timing with any sport he tries.”
The couple stresses that Dance International Studio is for dancers of all levels and is not geared just for those looking to become professional dancers.
“But we have the connections and we can help if someone wants to go to the next level and step up,” Ustinov added.
Dance International Studio students, along with Ustinov and Martinson, will march in Pottstown’s July 4th parade on Tuesday. After the parade the dancers will perform a hip-hop demonstration at Memorial Park as part of Pottstown’s GoFourth Festival. The studio also plans to provide demonstrations at two Pottstown FARM Almost Friday events this summer — on July 27 and Aug. 31. On Aug. 5, the studio will host a grand opening celebration at its studio.
For more information about Dance Studio International visit http://danceinternationalinc.com. For more information about Andrei Ustinov and Elena Martinson visit www.ustinovandmartinson.com.