Dancing angelically, as one

Just down the way from a chocolate shop and a boisterous bar in a nondescript Huntington Beach strip mall Saturday, dozens of teenage girls in wispy tutus practiced relevés, grandes pliés and battements soutenus.

Clad in wedding-white costumes evocative of the original 19th century production of “Giselle,” each girl leaned and swayed, her upper arms covered in detached tulle sleeves. Rings of lilies encircled the crown of each dancer’s head.

The dancers were rehearsing the Dance of the Wilis for the upcoming Ballet Repertory Theatre fall showcase, to be held this weekend at Golden West College.

“I love the way the piece brings everyone together,” said dancer Whitney Loo, 15. “It lets us dance as one collective piece of art.”

In Slavic tradition, wilis are the ghostly souls of young women who died before their wedding day, after being betrayed by their intendeds.

Other performances planned for the showcase include “Won’t That Be Fine,” a jazz-inspired composition based on the Frank Sinatra tune and Gershwin’s classic “Rhapsody in Blue.”

Students from the summer jazz workshop will perform “All You Need Is Love,” based on the recent Beatles-inspired film “Across the Universe.”

Ballet and tap workshop students will perform Brahms’ “Hungarian Dances,” as choreographed by Terri Sellars (ballet) and Shara Thibault (tap).

Jennifer Kornswiet, 16, sees dance as a distinctive method of communication.

“It’s a way to express your feelings,” she said. “Instead of talking, you move to tell a story, and that’s what I like best about it.”

Some pieces in the show were first choreographed by company Artistic Director Anthony Sellars more than three decades ago; “Ballet Studio” was created around the time that “A Chorus Line” first hit Broadway, and tells a similar story of dancers rehearsing.

“We do it to give the girls a chance to dance in a corps,” Ballet Mistress Terri Hayes Sellars said; the dancers then can take the experience into their professional lives.

“All these girls, whatever their ambition is, are 100% committed to us for 15 to 20 hours per week,” she said.

“It’s not just a hobby or a fun thing they do on the side.”

A handful of boys also participate in the company.

Past students have gone on to American Ballet Theatre, the New York City Ballet, and even straight into the Broadway production of “A Chorus Line.”

Sellars, a Los Angeles native, made his professional debut as the Nutcracker Prince with the New York City Ballet.

His son Christopher will perform “Spring Waters,” a Bolshoi pas de deux, with Katie Critchlow during the show; he is a soloist at Ballet West.

Jennifer said she wants to continue dancing beyond high school, but is unsure whether she will be a professional dancer.

However, her love of ballet, tap and jazz is lifelong.

“I used to sit and look at them dance through the window when I was younger,” she said.

She then began taking courses when she was older, and moved into the company around eighth grade.

Jennifer lives in Newport Beach, but comes to the school every day after getting out of Sage Hill School, as well as on Saturdays.

“My friends don’t get how I dance in school and here as well,” she said. “I try to balance the two as much as possible.”

Whitney has a similar schedule, which she described while she read a textbook between rehearsals.

“It’s pretty reasonable,” she said. “You just learn to do your homework when you first get home.”

She attends Huntington Beach High School, and also has been involved with running and swimming.

She’s danced since she was 3, and is in her third year in the company.

“It demands a lot of out of them, but they really enjoy it, and they get a lot out of it, too,” company spokeswoman Sylvie Nguyen said.

Whitney encouraged would-be dancers to get past their fears.

“Just go for it,” she said.

IF YOU GO

WHO: Ballet Repertory Theatre

WHAT: Fall Festival

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday

WHERE: Golden West College’s Mainstage Theater

INFORMATION: (714) 846-0215 or orangecountydancecenter.com

CANDICE BAKER can be reached at (949) 494-5480 or at candice.baker@latimes.com.