Westlake, Bay dancers receive honors

Dancers Bethany Comienski, center, and Becky Steffen, right, were honored with state and national performances. They are pictured with Addy Steffen, also a Beck Center dancer.

Westlake resident Becky Steffen and Bay Village resident Bethany Comienski have received several honors with Beck Center for the Arts Dance Workshop in recent months.

The company of eight girls was invited to the Youth American Grand Prix ballet festival in Chicago in late January. Their performance titled “Phantom of the Opera” placed in the top 12, along with Joffrey and Interlochen ballet academies among others. The following day the dancers attended master classes at Joffrey with guest instructors from international ballet companies.

Beck Center Dance was also the only teen company chosen to perform at Ohio Dance Association’s “Moving Works” annual benefit in Columbus on April 27. Capping a day of workshops by noted choreographers and performers, college and professional companies as well as the Lakewood-based Beck gave a concert to fund a local charity.

Becky, who will be a senior at Westlake High School, studied last summer at the University of Michigan dance department’s intensive. Bethany, entering her junior year at a Bay High School, studied at Ballet Magnificat’s dance intensive in Jackson, Miss., the past two summers. She will attend Columbus Ballet Met’s intensive this summer.