The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
State tourism visit includes conservatory
TORRINGTON — It’s transition time at the Nutmeg Conservatory for the Arts. The 11-member class of 2018 has graduated amid pomp and performances on four successive days in May, culminating in an inspiring ceremony, held May 20 at the Warner Theatre.
This brief lull between the regular session and the start of summer sessions was an ideal time for Nutmeg to welcome three wide-eyed representatives from the Connecticut Office of Tourism.
Rose Bove, Jennifer Haag and Jean Hebert from the CT tourism marketing team toured the Torrington Historical Society, the Warner Theatre, the Nutmeg Conservatory, Five Points Gallery, Five Points Annex and Noelke Gallery and then listened to Danielle Mailer outline the history of her mural on the back of the Staples building.
The “familiarization tour” was initiated by Lesley Budny, marketing director at the Warner, who said she hopes it will result in the tourism office marketing Torrington as a tourist destination.
Visionaries at the Nutmeg, the Warner and other venues have long predicted that Torrington would one day enjoy a renaissance as an arts and culture center that would attract tourists and new residents. Budny said that has already happened, and the tour on May 22 confirms that it is continuing to happen.
Sharon Dante, founding executive director at the Nutmeg, welcomed the tourism office representatives in the dance shop next door to the conservatory. The dance shop was formerly Louis Tunick Company, a prominent jeweler, and it retains many of the turnof-the-century features, including the wall safe. Holly Watson, director of operations, said, “This is the original architecture. The cases on that [north] wall are jewelry cases. We just removed the glass.”
“The store is open to the public,” Dante said. “It benefits the people who come to train, and we have kids who come literally from about 40 states and all around the world to train with us.”
The whirlwind tour of Nutmeg included the nearly 4,000-square-foot Premiere Studio on the third floor, the smaller second-floor studio, Ann Scoville’s ballet sculptures on the side of the adjacent Warner and beneath the color-changing LED lighting under the Nutmeg’s arch, the spacious dormitories, the quarter-sawn oak wainscoting, and more.
Victoria Mazzarelli, artistic director, said, “And we have beautiful new dance floors. We had great funding for the floors. We’ve done the studio downstairs as well. We are pretty fortunate because after 17 years the old floors certainly had a lot of wear and tear.”
For now, the floors are getting a rest from the daily pounding of thousands of dance steps. But the first of three summer sessions will begin on June 17 and run through June 30. It’s a preprofessional program designed for highly motivated dancers aged 10 – 14. Session 2, for men up to age 21, will run from July 1 – 28. And session 3, also for men up to age 21, will run from July 29 – Aug. 11. For more information, go to https://nutmegconservatory.org/balletprograms/professionalsummer-programs/.
Summer sessions also begin soon for younger children at Torrington School of Ballet. Summer ballet appreciation classes are for ages 3 – 10, and summer concentrated ballet classes are for ages 10 – 12. For information and registration forms, go to https://nutmegconservatory.org/ballet-programs/ torrington-school-ballet/ or call 860-482-7375.