Gulf Coast Ballet Theater students prepare for 'Cinderella' performance at St. Pete's Palladium

LARGO, Fla. - At the studio of the Gulf Coast Ballet Theater, 50 students and teachers are preparing for one of their biggest performances of the season, Cinderella.

High school senior 17-year-old Peyton Gleichowski is wrapping up her dancing career this season,

"It takes you through the story of Cinderella, but without talking," she said. "I was hoping that I would be Cinderella because that's like my dream role."

She is enjoying the weekly Saturday rehearsals for the big show.

"When I'm rehearsing, all the corrections that I've been getting are going through my head," Gleichowski explained. "But when I'm on stage honestly, it's just like my mind's blank, and I'm just enjoying it."

That blankness on stage is Gleichowski's favorite part of dance. She's looking forward to performing with a partner for the first time. She'll also be sharing the stage with wicked stepsisters, of course, including 20-year-old Makenzie Denning.

"It is how it makes me feel. It's a way that I express myself and, yeah, just a part of me," Denning said. "Being a stepsister, it's definitely different because I have to be kind of mean and naughty, so it's different than who I am like usually as a person, but it's been fun just to have kind of a different role and just to be funny."

Denning spends a lot of time showing her jealous emotions through bold and big facial expressions.

"Learning how to just make everything big, so people in the back can see what you're trying to say," Denning said. "To you, it might feel funny and weird that you're, like overexaggerating, but when we get on stage, it looks normal."

The lack of dialogue presents the biggest challenge for all the performers.

"It's mostly acting, and you feel the motions through the dance steps and through our facial expressions," Gleichowski said. "You just have to overexaggerate everything. Even if you feel stupid doing it, you have to be super big."

For artistic director Anne Carollo, watching many of the students grow up in the studio for the last 15 years has provided the biggest joy.

"They are now grown up. They're graduating seniors. They are adults, and seeing the artistic development and growth from a child learning a step to actually becoming true standalone artists is probably my proudest moment."

The Palladium Theater in St. Pete is hosting performances on Saturday, April 11, at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. The studio will also perform a mini, sensory-friendly version at 11 a.m.