At 8:30 Thursday morning, Morgan Ligon was ready for class. Instead of desks and chalkboards, her class had a ballet bar and music.
"Here we go," Elite Classical Coaching Director Catherine Lewellen said as she started class. "To create an elite ballerina, that's very different."
Ligon moved to North Texas from New York to study ballet with Lewellen.
"I really want to work with her," Lewellen said. "She has a natural artistry about her. Some people have it. She has it! That's something I feel God has blessed her with. She was made to dance."
"When I first started, everything was pretty much a struggle," Ligon said. "So I worked every day to try and improve."
Ligon proved it this month when she competed in the Youth America Grand Prix and won the coveted Hope Award, reserved at the judges' discretion for a dancer who stands out above the competition in both classical and contemporary ballet.
"I was really happy," Ligon said. "I didn't expect it, but I was happy that I got it."
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"At 11, yes! She is 12 now. She turned 12 in January. Still young, but it's crazy, right?" Lewellen said. "The Hope Award is also about potential. You don't have to be perfect yet. You have to show you have the potential to be the next star."
"My end goal is to be a professional at a ballet company and I'd love to tour around the world performing," Ligon said. "Dancers like me, I want them to see things I'm doing are, like, possible. You can reach any goal you want."
Lewellen said Ligon is already a sought-after dancer, with scholarship offers.
"I'm really excited to see what's next," Ligon said.
