Local nonprofit dance studio celebrates 40th

Young Dancers in Repertory (YDR) was founded in 1985 by husband-and-wife professional dancers Craig Gabrian and Carol Mezzacappa. Their original goal was to provide serious training for youth in Brooklyn’s underserved neighborhoods who dreamed of dance careers, and to build a professional touring youth ensemble. Over the past 40 years, YDR expanded steadily, adding classes and workshops for different age groups, and launching free after-school and summer programs that made it easier for more families to access dance.

Unlike his wife Carol, who trained in dance from childhood, Craig, who grew up in Missouri, says he did not truly encounter dance until his final year at the University of Missouri. He recalls that Stephens College in the same city had an excellent dance program. “I was fortunate to receive a scholarship to study at the Perry-Mansfield Performing Arts School and Camp, and then I received a scholarship to Stephens College. That is what really started my path in dance,” he said.

Perry-Mansfield later became the place where Craig and Carol met. The two taught there in 1983, married a year later, and decided to build something together. “We both loved working with children and young people, and we felt we should keep doing this work together, so we decided to create our own program,” Craig said. YDR was born in 1985.

“For the first 10 years, we were basically nomadic,” Craig said, describing how they borrowed and exchanged rehearsal spaces wherever they could. “Whenever there was an opportunity, we would negotiate with schools to use their venue.” It wasn’t until 1995 that YDR began offering regular, ongoing classes, and it was this step that laid the foundation for expanding into more programs later on.

Around the same time, a parent of one of the dance troupe members wanted to bring dance into public schools. In 1997, when dance education was rare in many public schools, YDR began teaching dance at a public school in East New York. Even as the neighborhood struggled with public safety challenges, Craig and Carol continued bringing their dancers to perform around the city. “We all really believed in what we were doing,” Craig said.

For a period, YDR also built a performing group of professional dancers. After Carol died in 2004, Craig said it was no longer possible to sustain that kind of scale and structure. He shifted the organization’s focus fully back to young dancers and continued building YDR around youth training and education.

In 2011, YDR moved to its current home at 5602 Fifth Avenue in Sunset Park. Working in a neighborhood with significant immigrant and working-class communities remains challenging, Craig said, especially given uneven access to arts resources across Brooklyn. Compared with neighborhoods like Bay Ridge and Park Slope, he said, Sunset Park still receives fewer arts opportunities. Because of that, YDR aims to maintain high-level training while keeping costs as manageable as possible, including offering financial aid to families who need it.

“Honestly, for me, affordability is the biggest factor, because I know Sunset Park has been supporting and subsidizing this rare arts space,” said Jennifer Wertz, whose daughter Winter has taken classes at YDR for years.

She also said convenience matters. The location and schedule make it realistic for her family, and she noted that after the pandemic, many organizations were forced to close, making the overall landscape harder. Taking everything together, she said, YDR was the best fit.

“I think dance is really wonderful because it teaches kids how to control their bodies, helps them build strength, and encourages creative physical expression,” said another parent, Andrea Knox. She has also taken YDR adult dance workshops and said the experience was fun and joyful. “Dance is an activity that can cover multiple levels at the same time, so I really love it. It not only brings physical growth, but also boosts self-confidnce.”

She also emphasized that YDR's diverse dance programs are one of the key reasons she prefers to send her children there. She believes that children growing up in an ethnically and culturally diverse community benefit from exposure to diverse arts, which helps broaden their horizons and cultivate their capacity for inclusivity and understanding.

YDR begins winter dance classes on Saturday, Jan. 10. Courses include Pre-Ballet, Ballet, Theater Dance, Modern Dance, and Dance Ensemble Auditions. Classes are for children and teens ages 3 to 14. Free trial classes are scheduled from Jan. 3 to Jan. 9. Families can call (347) 702-7155 to schedule, and find more information at youngdancersinrep.org.