A line of cars snakes along West Fortune Street across from the Barrymore Hotel and in front of Patel Conservatory as classes dismiss in the late afternoon. Performing arts parents wait behind their steering wheels for their actors or dancers or musicians to appear.
A few parents, mostly dads, are free of their automobiles for the moment. They’re hanging out at the tables making up Patel’s outdoor waiting area. They’re checking their texts, nursing Starbucks, planning dinner and waiting for their artistic offspring.
As the students, mostly dancers, find their fathers, talk turns to the day’s classes and what they learned and what’s still a struggle because dance is demanding for students and, often, parents.
Move over, soccer moms. Make way for the ballet dads.
Ballet dads come from near: University of Tampa professor Ryan Cragun can walk to Patel, where son Toren, 16, is in Patel’s ballet program. Michael Babanats works from home, a 10-minute drive from Patel where son Jackson, 15, is an apprentice in the Next Generation Ballet® trainee program, and daughter Julianna, 11, is in the Patel Conservatory Youth Ballet program.
Ballet dads come from far: Eric Valdes and family live in Brooksville, roughly 50 miles from Patel. Adri is in the Patel Conservatory Youth Ballet program while sister Banjoe takes tap and theater classes.
Ballet dads are made, not born. The transformation begins when their child finds their way to ballet. Unsurprisingly, Nutcracker plays a prominent role.
Nutcracker as Ballet Gateway
Jackson Babanats took top honors in classical dance for his age group at the Youth America Grand Prix competition at Straz in January. It was only a few years ago, though, that Jackson was a dedicated tap student with no time for or interest in ballet.
An instructor “talked him into doing a small part in Nutcracker,” his father, Michael said. Being part of Next Generation Ballet’s always spectacular holiday production proved to be a powerful persuader.
“After that, he was pretty much hooked,” Michael said. “He started taking ballet classes and has stuck with it since.”
Toren Cragun’s story is eerily similar. He had wanted to pursue martial arts, inspired originally by Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, but couldn’t find a good fit. His parents, Ryan and Debi, suggested ballet as a way to improve his balance.
Toren agreed and off they went to Patel. He had barely begun classes when he was offered a part in Nutcracker.
“They cast him instantly,” Ryan said. “They needed boys.” Toren was the only boy in his class.
A few months later, Toren is onstage, part of the spectacle that is Nutcracker. “After his first show, he comes out and he’s like, ‘Mom, Dad! There were millions of people there!’ He was hooked.”
Ballet Dads on Duty
Adri Valdes began ballet classes at age 5. She’s also taking jazz classes and was doing tap with older sister Banjoe before deciding that doing all three was a bit much.
Adri danced the role of a toy soldier in December’s Nutcracker. While she was onstage, her father, Eric, was backstage helping to keep things running smoothly.
Eric decided volunteering seemed like an ideal way to cover those two- and three-hour time blocks while his daughters were in class at Straz, “especially during Nutcracker when I’m there almost every day of the week.”
He volunteers on the boys’ side during Nutcracker, “but they don’t need much help, so what I find myself doing is assisting the ballet moms.”
He keeps a pack loaded with hairspray, bandages, hair clips and other backstage necessities. He pitches in wherever he sees a need. Eric reunites dancers with parents after the show, and shepherds late-arrivals to the dressing room.
In December’s Nutcracker, he got Father Christmas from stage to lobby for photos and then backstage to prepare for the next performance. Father Christmas was Toren’s father, Ryan.
The role of Father Christmas doesn’t require dancing, likely making it one of the few times Ryan’s been on stage standing still. He and wife Debi are trained ballet dancers. While they are both proud Toren chose ballet, they were determined not to push him in that direction.
“We coaxed him. We didn’t want it to be ‘You will dance!’” Ryan said, adding with a laugh, “It was kind of sneaky of us.”
Backstage and Beyond
Ryan and Debi Cragan began volunteering when Toren was in Nutcracker. Ballet dads must not have been much of a thing then, because Ryan’s presence drew some strange looks from the ballet moms. In fact, the Facebook page for volunteers was called Mothers of Patel Dancers.
“I’m the one who got that changed to Parents of Patel Dancers,” Ryan said. (The page is now known as Parents and Friends of the Patel Conservatory.)
Volunteers aren’t only backstage, though. Michael Babanats will be around during Nutcracker when it’s all-hands-on-deck, but Michael’s primary volunteer work is handling the Patel Spirit Shop website and Shopify account.
“My wife was asked to run the Spirit Shop and she asked me to help out,” Michael said. “I do pretty much all the computer work, making sure stuff is on the website.”
Ballet dads may meet on the benches, but they bond in the trenches. They – and ballet moms as well – are the ones handling the minor and sometimes major tasks that keep shows running smoothly. They’re also spending valuable time with their children.
“I get to see them grow through the performing arts,” said Eric. “I get to see how much it means to them to perform to the audience.
“They want to put on a good show and production for their friends and family. So it’s nice being behind stage, getting to see that,” Eric said. “They like being on the stage and performing. So it’s just something that’s nice to see.”
