Autism and ballerinas

Pine Island —Eve McClanahan, a state-certified dance teacher as well as the owner and director of Black Dirt Dance, Ltd., is now teaching a ballet class exclusively for autistic girls at her studio in Pine Island. The program, called “Bella! Ballerinas,” meets every Saturday in Pine Island. “The girls love to dance, and my goal is to eventually have the girls participate in a ballet class that is not limited to autistic children,” McClanahan said. Meg Richmond of Vernon, N.J., approached McClanahan after another dance school refunded her money after her daughter, Becky, a highly functioning autistic child, took just one class. “I feel if they had just given her a couple more chances, things would have been different,” Richmond said. At Black Dirt Dance, McClanahan looks forward to Becky’s progress. “She connects with me more each lesson - hearing and following directions and carrying them out. This is an important element of ballet: Learning the class structure and adhering to the discipline involved. I am so glad that Meg had the persistent belief in her child.” For more information on this class, as well as a music therapy class for boys (taught by a certified male instructor), contact McClanahan at Black Dirt Dance at 845-258-1100.