Princess Lisa, Captain Windy and the Crew of the Ole ShipChannel 5
My Mom's Ballet Company was well known in the 50's and 60's all over the city, and performed with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, WCET, all the local television channels, and YMCA programs. Churches asked for her dancers, as well as schools and library programs. The set designer for a popular children's show, Uncle Al, was Bill Pierce. He worked with his wife, Phyllis, to bring educational and artistic material to children in the "Uncle Al Show". Captain Windy, Uncle Al's wife, would present some of the show, shepard the little ones around in dances, songs and games, while Uncle Al laughed, talked to the little ones, prepared another segment of the show. Children all over the Cincinnati area, Indiana, and Kentucky, were tuned in to this show which parents used to babysit the littlest ones while the ironing got done(what's that you say?) or supper was thrown into the crock pot. Bill and Phyllis Pierce were strong advocates in bringing my mother's ballet segments to the show, and bits of "Peter and the Wolf", or "The Circus Story", or "Around the World in Dance" were presented on this morning show. It became a regular part of the show, thanks to the Pierce's, to have a fine scene, painted by Bill, with forest and sun, the stage set to fit the story, and then our dancers in action on live television. Mostly the Kinderballet was requested, sometimes the older dancers.
One time an emergency call went out, for an older dancer, and mom sent one of the assistant teachers, Lisha. She was tall, with strawberry blond hair down to her shoulders. She wore a long gown, twirled around, and led the little children in dances, and when she twitched her wand the camera turned suddenly to a short movie, a commercial or another scene. She wore her hair long, with a crown(of course: she was a Princess!) She became "Princess Lisa" and did not do much ballet after that, being a "Princess" and all...
The relationship with the Pierces was lifelong. It became a family event, with their children in ballet class, attending recitals and performances, often helping with the staging and lighting. That is how I met the Pierce's children. Mom was always needing good lighting and sets, and Mrs. Pierce was a terrific Public Relations Person. In the time of newspapers and television, she knew who to contact, where to call, how to get a story into the paper, how to write it. When Uncle Al left TV, the time of the Mall was coming into its own, and Mrs. Pierce made the ballet company famous by setting dates with every Mall in the city for every holiday. Sets were not possible in the Malls, but Bill helped by provided important scenery for the ballets. Stages were becoming scarce and more difficult to use. We began to use the public areas of the city more, such as libraries and outdoor amphitheaters.
Mrs. Pierce often introduced the Ballet and Anneliese, and set the atmosphere for each Ballet performance. We would have yearly dates with the Mariemont Carillon in the Park, and Bill built the stage in portable sections for the company.
Changes occurred in both the media and in the performing arts. The Kinderballet began to have less venues in the Malls as their heyday diminished, and our reputation as an art outreach program increased. We now perform in Libraries, for the Vevay Historic Theater, and Museums. The scenes and backdrops are quickly set up and dismantled, and the floor and music are brought to the performance with the students. Parents provide the transportation and basics for the programing so that the show will go on! Yet so few of the students realize that our roots are based on those first shows on the Uncle Al Show, and that Phyllis and Bill Pierce played such a major part in the foundation of our Ballet Company.
One time an emergency call went out, for an older dancer, and mom sent one of the assistant teachers, Lisha. She was tall, with strawberry blond hair down to her shoulders. She wore a long gown, twirled around, and led the little children in dances, and when she twitched her wand the camera turned suddenly to a short movie, a commercial or another scene. She wore her hair long, with a crown(of course: she was a Princess!) She became "Princess Lisa" and did not do much ballet after that, being a "Princess" and all...
The relationship with the Pierces was lifelong. It became a family event, with their children in ballet class, attending recitals and performances, often helping with the staging and lighting. That is how I met the Pierce's children. Mom was always needing good lighting and sets, and Mrs. Pierce was a terrific Public Relations Person. In the time of newspapers and television, she knew who to contact, where to call, how to get a story into the paper, how to write it. When Uncle Al left TV, the time of the Mall was coming into its own, and Mrs. Pierce made the ballet company famous by setting dates with every Mall in the city for every holiday. Sets were not possible in the Malls, but Bill helped by provided important scenery for the ballets. Stages were becoming scarce and more difficult to use. We began to use the public areas of the city more, such as libraries and outdoor amphitheaters.
Mrs. Pierce often introduced the Ballet and Anneliese, and set the atmosphere for each Ballet performance. We would have yearly dates with the Mariemont Carillon in the Park, and Bill built the stage in portable sections for the company.
Changes occurred in both the media and in the performing arts. The Kinderballet began to have less venues in the Malls as their heyday diminished, and our reputation as an art outreach program increased. We now perform in Libraries, for the Vevay Historic Theater, and Museums. The scenes and backdrops are quickly set up and dismantled, and the floor and music are brought to the performance with the students. Parents provide the transportation and basics for the programing so that the show will go on! Yet so few of the students realize that our roots are based on those first shows on the Uncle Al Show, and that Phyllis and Bill Pierce played such a major part in the foundation of our Ballet Company.
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