ABAC's Mission & Philosophy...

Mrs. Day founded her school in 2001 because she wanted to create an atmosphere for ballet students that was much different than what was out there. She has been sought after as a teacher at dozens of the leading ballet academies in Orange County and even taught locally at several of these places from 1994-2001.
She was disappointed in finding that if the students wanted to train seriously in ballet they had to sacrifice a normal existence and were demanded to maintain scary thin body weights, take so many classes that their growing bodies were under undue strain which lead commonly to injury, were socially isolated, were often inappropriately controlled by their instructors and were subjected to an atmosphere of manipulative competitive pressure between their own friends and classmates. Unfortunately only a tiny percent ever go professional and many of the most talented ballet dancers were quitting because they were burnt out or rebelling in their own way.
On the other hand you have these “competition dance” studios where once again children were not truly benefiting because they spent all of their time training in so many disciplines with so many different teachers that the directors lacked a personal connection with the students and had no quality control or continuity of style. Most of these dancers become what we at ABAC call a “jack of all trades, expert at none.” They have stacks of meaningless trophies from pageant style competitions that glorify tricks and sassafras rather than classical technique.

Our program works!

Our dancers have been accepted to such prestigious programs as Joffrey Trainee, Alonzo King’s Lines Ballet, Boston Ballet’s Dance Lab, Debbie Allen Academy, Kirov Academy, ABT Collegiate Program, and the Orange County High School of the Arts. The excellence that ballet training encourages has also lead to our dancers being accepted to top universities and has helped them to develop into people of substance, culture, and character.

Every December Mrs. Day produces a delightful “Nutcracker” and every spring a classical ballet selection. Though they are optional by audition and rehearsals are separate as not to detract from our important technique class time, these act as our “recitals” and have included renditions of “Swan Lake”, “La Bayadere”, “Peter Pan”, “Cinderella”, “Sleeping Beauty”, “Les Sylphides/Jewels”, and “Coppelia”.

Ask any ABAC parent and you will discover that performance time is an event full of joy and completely different than the stressful backstage atmosphere at most dance schools. All ballet students should be exposed to the classics and Mrs. Day is dedicated to make sure that all of her students respect and appreciate the tradition of this beautiful art form. MOST IMPORTANTLY WE WANT THEM TO LOVE THEIR DANCE EXPERIENCE AT ABAC!

Sara Day, Director & Owner

Mrs. Day began training in ballet at age 8 with Axel & Cecilia Herring of Redlands Festival Ballet. A relocation brought her to dance with Larry & Sarma Rosenburg (currently at Anaheim Ballet) during which time she was selected to be a featured dancer in New York City Ballet’s” Song’s Of The Auvergne” at the opening of the Orange County Performing Arts Center. She also studied at Ballet Conservatory with Alan McCarter, and then Ballet Pacifica (then under the directorship of Lila Zali). She performed leading roles with Ballet Pacifica under Molly Lynch and was invited after a performance attended by Joffrey Ballet Artistic Director, Gerald Arpino, to train at Joffrey with full scholarship, which lead to her performing with the company through 1992. Mrs. Day also then danced with San Francisco Ballet. Early in her teaching career she taught locally at Ballet Conservatory, Classical Ballet Academy and Mission Viejo Dance & Performing Arts Center. Mrs. Day has always desired to be excellent in all areas of ballet including teaching, so she attended teaching methodology classes with the Masters of the Foiskola Institute in Vagonova Technique, studied ISTD and RAD curriculums, and became certified in ballet through Dance Masters of America. A desire to teach all of the technical detail and artistry that creates a truly wonderful ballet dancer without the psychological stress that is a factor in most quality ballet programs lead her to open ABAC in 2001. Her goal is to help her dancers and audience appreciate ballet as a form of expression, entertainment, and a means to elevate oneself in every way including self-discipline, culture, focus, and ability to deeply feel all of the joy that life has to offer.
Mrs. Day is married with two sons and still resides in San Clemente

Training Structure at ABAC

Preparatory Levels (1class per week)
Are divided into Pre-school for ages 3-4, Primary for 5 & up (D.O.E.), and Level One for 6 & up (D.O.E.). No auditions are required. These programs are a prelude to formal ballet instruction and introduce children to music and movement through a structured progression that stresses creativity and group interaction. At the end of Preparatory Ballet the children will have been introduced to ballet steps and terminology and the basics of dance. Students enrolled are eligible to enter the Academy Levels.

Academy Levels (2-4 classes per week)
Consist of Beginning Intermediate, Intermediate and Intermediate II levels. Placement classes are required for students entering without prior training at ABAC. Classes in this division are carefully graded by age, physical strength and development. Students are introduced to progressive levels of ballet technique as described in the School Syllabus. They are promoted according to individual progress in acquiring technique and strength.

Company Levels (3-8 classes per week)
Students selected for Intermediate II & Advanced levels concentrate on perfecting technique and developing artistry, and a foundation is laid on which to build a professional career or to simply achieve a comparable level of accomplishment. Students in this division are selected as apprentices and company members of our Youth Ballet Company.

Grace Day Youth Ballet Company
ABAC provides our school structure with an exciting goal of becoming one of the GDYB Company members or apprentices. Company members serve as mentors and inspiration to the younger dancers, are eligible for solo and principal roles, and our rehearsal assistant and teachers training program. Our Youth Ballet Co. dances for community service at local retirement homes and community events, can be selected for ballet competitions, and are invited to participate in master classes with internationally renowned teachers.