Lifelong ballerina Katie Mossburg has received the Jerry Rose Scholarship for Excellence from the West Virginia Division of Culture and History. Receipt of the coveted award comes along with an invitation to perform at the West Virginia Dance Festival in Charleston.
"I am so thankful for this opportunity and the chance not only to represent (Morgantown Dance Studio) and all of my fantastic teachers, but also to perform this piece in front of my fellow dancers and accept a statewide honor," said Mossburg, a junior at Bridgeport High School. "I've been rehearsing 'Esmeralda' since the beginning of this school year and I can't wait to share all of my dedication and joy with an audience."
That event, the 33rd annual, will be held in April over a three-day period. All dance schools and dance programs throughout the state are invited to participate.
“We offer dance classes and master dance classes taught by nationally-recognized dance professionals,” said Caryn Gresham of the WV Division of Culture and History/WV Dance Festival. “The dance festival was started as way to encourage and promote interest in dance in the state and it has grown ever since.”
The festival also features performances by some of those groups, as determined by an adjudication process which took place in late-February. It was during that adjudication that Mossburg and about 20 other individually dancers from throughout West Virginia competed for the Jerry Rose Scholarship for Excellence, named after well-known dance professional Jerry Rose, who has been involved in the festival since its inception.
Mossburg performed a variation from the ballet "La Esmeralda." Original choreography is by Marius Petipa.
Another scholarship sponsored by the Friends of Culture and History – is also awarded based on the adjudication.
“Any student who is interested in applying for the scholarship dances for the dance professionals and they select the scholarship winners,” Gresham said. “They make selections and we present scholarships to the students at the dance festival and both of the scholarship recipients have the opportunity to do a solo piece.”
The Jerry Rose Scholarship is a $500 award, which Mossburg can use to further her dance education by attending a workshop or dance intensive of her choice.
“We’ve had students go to Point Park in Pittsburgh for a dance intensive and some have gone to a program in Virginia,” Gresham said. “They usually select something that allows them to focus on a particular form of dance or to work with a particular instructor.”
This is Mossburg's fifth year to attend the festival.
"I've always admired the previous scholarship winners and I am so fortunate to now be one of them," she said.
Mossburg has studied ballet, pointe, modern and jazz. Since a very young age, she has taken instruction at Annabel Timms School of Ballet in Bridgeport. She has also studied through summer intensives at Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, University of North Carolina School of the Arts, North Carolina Dance Theatre and master classes with Misty Copeland, Christine Schwaner, Julia Erickson and others.
Recent performances have included those with Morgantown Dance Studio, Morgantown Ballet Company and Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, In recent years, she danced in the role of Clara in "A Children's Nutcracker" with Annabel Timms School of Ballet.
She is now a student at Morgantown Dance Studio and will be representing that studio at the festival. Katie is the daughter of Jeff and Marcy (Bowers) Mossburg.
Also receiving a favorable adjudication in February was the Bridgeport High School Dance Ensemble, under the direction of Alicia Kinsey. That team which will also perform at the April dance festival.
Editor's Note: Top two photos were taken by Marcy Mossburg at the dance festival adjudication. The photo just above is Katie's official photo with Morgantown Ballet Company. It was taken by Luke Shannon.
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