Ballet company having fun with spring show

There's more to ballet than "The Nutcracker."Granted, it's a tried-and-true production for the Placer Theatre Ballet. But after busting out the "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" each holiday season, this youth ballet company likes to mix it up a bit when it comes time for the spring production. This is where "Coppelia" comes in. "We wanted to do something different and we wanted to do a more traditional ballet," said Shea Wing, president of the Placer Theatre Ballet board and director of "Coppelia."Placer Theatre Ballet has been working on "Coppelia" since February. The show opens Saturday. "Coppelia" is a comedic ballet that tells the story of two young lovers, Swanhilda and Franz, who are engaged to be married. The ballet's name refers to a life-sized dancing doll, created by the eccentric Dr. Coppelius. Swanhilda and Franz separately encounter Coppelia and think she is human, with entertaining consequences. Nick Topete plays Franz in Placer Theatre Ballet's "Coppelia" production. "One day he's going to visit (Swanhilda) and he sees, on a balcony, a beautiful girl," said Topete, a junior at Bear River High School. "He falls in love with her at first sight."Swanhilda, portrayed by Ariana Lodge, discovers Franz is enamored with Coppelia. She also discovers, before Franz does, that Copelia's not a girl but a doll."She throughout the ballet is trying to help Franz understand that it's not OK to go cheat, to go flirt," Lodge, a Whitney High School freshman, said of her character. "It's pretty funny that she decides to play a trick on him and he gets tossed around a bit," Topete said of Swanhilda and Franz. Rachel Huntington has had fun playing the doll in the middle of the madness. "It's really funny," the Olympus Junior High eighth-grader said of "Coppelia." "It's known as ballet's comedy. It's really fun for families."Wing said Placer Theatre Ballet tries to accommodate younger audience members with its spring production. "We thought that 'Coppelia' would be a good way to bring ballet to an audience who wouldn't know what it is," he said. "It's a great ballet. It's been around for hundreds of years."The humorous story of "Coppelia" has allowed the dancers to lighten up a bit, Wing said. "Because it's a comedy, I've encouraged them to be a little goofy," he said. "Ballet is traditionally more structured than a lot of forms of dance. I've encouraged them to focus on the character development and to have fun with it."__________In the KnowWhat: "Coppelia"Presented by: Placer Theatre BalletWhen: 1 and 5 p.m. Saturday, noon and 4 p.m. SundayWhere: Placer High School auditorium, 275 Orange St.Cost: $11-$18Info: (916) 630-7820, www.placertheatreballet.org