Winter in Tahoe is busy and for one local dance company, it’s the busiest season of all.
On a cold Thursday night in Tahoe City, the lake outside was dark and still. Inside a second-floor studio above a small shopping center, more than 20 young dancers moved in unison. Hair pulled tight, shoulders down, eyes fixed on the mirror. They are in the Nutcracker rehearsal.
Christin Hanna stood at the front of the room, watching every lifted chin and late entrance. Showtime is just two weeks away.
"We actually started out as Tahoe Youth Ballet, and it was modeled after the company I actually studied with in Reno, which sadly no longer exists, but it was called Nevada Festival Ballet. And our same model of having advanced students, as the core of ballet, it's kind of the heart and soul of the ballet," Hanna said.
Now known as the Lake Tahoe Dance Collective, the company has 76 dancers ranging from children to adults. Bringing arts programming to rural communities comes with challenges, Hanna said. Funding is harder to secure, audiences are smaller, and venues are often borrowed, but the expectations remain high.
“Arts at the level that we put it on is more commonly seen in more urban areas. I don’t think it’s fair that because you live in a rural area, you don’t have access to great arts programming,” she said.
This year’s Nutcracker is set in 1919 Lake Tahoe, inspired by the historic Tahoe Tavern. Without a full performing arts center in the region, the company will perform at the North Tahoe High School auditorium.
Despite these limitations, the dancers’ dedication is evident. Romelia Broglio remembered being the smallest dancer in the company when she started.
“When I started in 2019 I was nine years old. I was the littlest in the company for, like, three or four years,” Broglio said.
Now, she’s one of the leaders.
“I’m playing the role of the Snow Queen this year. It comes with a lot of dedication, confidence and leadership,” Broglio said.
For Mila Quijas, dancing represents possibility.
“We don’t get much dance up in Lake Tahoe. It’s a small town. But there’s still lots of kids who love to dance. I remember saying I didn’t think I would come this far. And now I have,” Quijas said.
Dancers travel from all corners of the Tahoe Basin — including Carson City, South Lake Tahoe, Truckee, and Incline Village — sometimes driving 45 minutes each way to attend classes. Hanna works to ensure that cost is never a barrier. In 2024 alone, the dance company provided more than $35,000 in scholarships, not just for tuition, but also for dancewear and pointe shoes.
“We do not charge any fee to any family. We actually contract the dancers as if they were professionals, and we give them a little stipend so there’s no barrier,” Hanna said.
Back in the studio, Tchaikovsky's classics begin again. Older dancers guide the younger ones. Snow Queens, flowers, and future professionals rehearse above a quiet town, carrying the magic of ballet to the Tahoe community.
