Corella Ballet looks to keep Spain's dancers at home

Reporting from Segovia, Spain -- Corella Ballet’s location doesn’t bode well for its relevance in the dance world. It is miles from Madrid and tucked into a former warehouse for firetrucks, where on a recent morning 43 world-class dancers began languorous pliés to music from a small prop piano.

But the modest circumstances are in contrast to artistic director Angel Corella’s lofty ambitions. When the American Ballet Theatre principal and Spanish native started his company a year ago this month, his goal was to create a top-notch classical ballet company on a grand scale: 60 dancers under yearlong contracts and a repertoire of classics such as Natalia Makarova’s “La Bayadère.” And so far, even though “the crisis” — as the Spaniards call the global economic collapse — endures, the company is humming along toward that goal.

But will Corella be able to make a lasting mark on classical ballet in Spain? He’s trying, but the company has to contend with a country where ballet hasn’t ever found its footing.