Tonight, Juniper Zay is a carriage horse. An important one too. The 14-year-old’s role is to pull the carriage to center stage in Eugene Ballet’s “Cinderella.”

Without her, “Cinderella’s not getting to the ball,” said fellow carriage horse, Hailey Ormesher.

She stops, paws at the ground with her pointe shoe and shakes her head side-to-side — the large horse costume she wears sits snug on top of her head. There, Cinderella climbs out and begins to dance. 

Zay dances with Eugene Ballet Academy, the educational counterpart to the professional dance company. During the opening night of “Cinderella” at the Hult Center, more than half of the dancers on stage were from the academy.

With roles as dragonflies, sprites, pixies, carriage horses, carriage drivers and pages, academy dancers fill the stage with energy and bustle. Plus, for about two hours, they get to share a stage with the professionals.

Sprite costumes hang in a studio backstage at the Hult Center before opening night of Eugene Ballet’s “Cinderella.” Sprites are one of the six roles danced by 31 Eugene Ballet Academy dancers, ranging in age from 9 to 24. Credit: Isaac Wasserman / Lookout Eugene-Springfield / Catchlight / RFA
From left: Elliana Kraker sits, Kendall Pappas reads and Chloe Solberg stretches as they wait for the show to begin on opening night. Credit: Isaac Wasserman / Lookout Eugene-Springfield / Catchlight / RFA

“I think we’re with each other more than we are at school. Like a second family.”

A group of dancers who perform as sprites stretch before the opening performance. Most of the academy students have been dancing together for years. “I think we’re with each other more than we are at school,” Kendall Pappas said. “Like a second family.” Credit: Isaac Wasserman / Lookout Eugene-Springfield / Catchlight / RFA
Miri Furman puts lashes on Skye Evans before the show. “We watched them grow since they were little, so it’s really special watching them grow with their friends,” said Avery Saks, a parent to one of the dancers. Credit: Isaac Wasserman / Lookout Eugene-Springfield / Catchlight / RFA

“We’re goofy. We are more immature. We laugh. We are loud.”

Hailey Ormesher (left) and Juniper Zay, both 14, slide around on the finished concrete floor backstage at the Hult Center. “Not in a mean way, but I think we bring more joy,” Kendall Pappas said about what it is like when more than half of the dancers in “Cinderella” are student dancers from the academy. “We’re goofy. We are more immature. We laugh. We are loud.” Credit: Isaac Wasserman / Lookout Eugene-Springfield / Catchlight / RFA
Allen Adams of the Hult Center house crew hoists the ropes backstage that control the curtains. Credit: Isaac Wasserman / Lookout Eugene-Springfield / Catchlight / RFA
Immediately following the curtain drop, Eugene Ballet Academy dancers flock to principal dancer and instructor Mark Tucker as he shows them a new skill. Credit: Isaac Wasserman / Lookout Eugene-Springfield / Catchlight / RFA
Hailey Ormesher (left) and Juniper Zay prepare to take the stage as horses pulling Cinderella’s carriage. “There’s kind of the tingle in your stomach that’s not like ‘I’m scared.’ It’s kind of a combination of nerves and excitement,” Juniper said. “I don’t know if this is just me, but I always start to doubt myself right before I go on. Like ‘Am I supposed to go on now?’ Which is why I am really happy to have Hailey because Hailey is more confident than me. It makes it easier to go on stage.” Credit: Isaac Wasserman / Lookout Eugene-Springfield / Catchlight / RFA

“I am really happy to have Hailey because Hailey is more confident than me. It makes it easier to go on stage.”

Academy dancers watch “Cinderella” from backstage. Though the young dancers don’t have central roles in the show, they get the opportunity to learn from their mentors in a performance setting. “To have access to knowledge from people who have done it and have been through the process … It’s like pieces of gold. Little nuggets,” Liz Witthoeft said. “Koki (Yamaguchi, Eugene Ballet principal dancer) told me to always know where your pinky fingers are in space. It’s just small little things that you wouldn’t even think of that they have thought about already.” Credit: Isaac Wasserman / Lookout Eugene-Springfield / Catchlight / RFA
The stage at the Hult Center is filled with academy dancers at one point during the show. Besides playing necessary roles, one of the most important contributions the young performers make is giving time for professional company dancers to rest between athletically intense sections of the program. Credit: Isaac Wasserman / Lookout Eugene-Springfield / Catchlight / RFA
People watch “Cinderella” from backstage during the third act of the show. Credit: Isaac Wasserman / Lookout Eugene-Springfield / Catchlight / RFA
The Eugene Ballet performs Toni Pimble’s version of “Cinderella” at the Hult Center. Credit: Isaac Wasserman / Lookout Eugene-Springfield / Catchlight / RFA

“It’s really beautiful to see your teachers dance, and to dance beside them too.”

From left, Hailey Ormesher, Elliana Kraker and Juniper Zay watch from backstage as the company dancers perform. Many of the professional dancers at Eugene Ballet are also teachers for the student dancers in the Eugene Ballet Academy. “It’s nice to be in shows with them because we can finally see what our teachers are really talking about in full motion,” said Samantha Thompson, who isn’t pictured. “It’s really beautiful to see your teachers dance and to dance beside them too.” Credit: Isaac Wasserman / Lookout Eugene-Springfield / Catchlight / RFA
From left, Elliana Kraker, Juniper Zay and Hailey Ormesher walk to the dressing room after the end of the opening night show. Credit: Isaac Wasserman / Lookout Eugene-Springfield / Catchlight / RFA