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Life's a dance

For the prince of The Chocolate Nutcracker, "This is just who I am." For the community he has come back to help, it's a lot more.

By DEMORRIS A. LEE
Published December 22, 2006

	Rehearsal at the 1st Dance Studio in St. Petersburg for the Nutcracker. Sir.Brock Warren is in town for the show, as is childhood friend and dance student Terrence Jamison, red shirt.
[Times photo: Kathleen Flynn]

ADVERTISEMENT [Times photo: Kathleen Flynn] Since childhood, dance has been a jubilant experience for Sir.Brock Warren. [Times photo: Kathleen Flynn] “People can see that a young black man can be a success. Not only in life, but also in dance,” says Sir.Brock Warren. “The best part about college is that I can see that I can make a difference in my community and with my family,’’ Warren says.

ST. PETERSBURG

Sir.Brock Warren is oblivious to the young eyes surrounding him. He glides through the air. In harmony with Yo-Yo Ma's version of Bach's Cello Suite No. 1, his slim body spins. His arms reach.

The music stops. He notices the young eyes and walks over with a smile so big it makes him squint. He hugs the kids.

Just a few years ago, Sir.Brock Warren was one of those young dancers.

Now 20, Sir.Brock didn't want to be the prince in The Chocolate Nutcracker. Having performed in the show every year it was at Ruth Eckerd Hall, he was more enthusiastic about the portions of the show that allowed him to dance more freely. He wanted to be in the Jazz scene. The Africa scene. The Snake Pit scene.

But as Chocolate struggles to become the reality for hundreds of budding dancers at St. Petersburg's Mahaffey Theater this year, there was no better time than now for Sir.Brock, the homegrown dancer, to return as the prince of the show.

Reaching up, out

LaVerne Reed, the creator of The Chocolate Nutcracker, remembers Sir.Brock as a young boy "that just had athletic ability, a natural jumper. He was fearless."

Reed's version of the multicultural adaptation of the Nutcracker is based in 1950s Harlem. She remembers Sir.Brock watching the older dancers from the side, copying them. He didn't have the technical ability they did. "But he would try and try and try."

Now other kids are on the side, trying to mimic Sir.Brock's moves.

He grew up and left his single-parent home in St. Petersburg for a full scholarship at one of the most prestigious dance schools in the country.

"If I can do it, they can do it," Sir.Brock said. "The best part about college is that I can see that I can make a difference in my community and with my family. People can see that a young black man can be a success. Not only in life, but also in dance."

Sir.Brock returned home Sun- day after exams at the Boston Conservatory. He arrived in Tampa, dropped his bags at home and headed right to rehearsal. He would be there all day, dancing, giving hugs, giving encouragement.

"This is just who I am," Sir.Brock said, between hugs and practicing his prince solo. "It's about lifting people up. Besides, this is home. I grew up with everyone here. This community is my family."

Born to dance

When he was 3, his mother, Doris Warren known as Ms. Tiki to most, said her son would watch a video once or twice and have the dance moves down.

Sir.Brock just couldn't keep still. His body would move at the slightest musical sound. Even the sound of a sliding chair from another child's school desk was dance music to Sir.Brock.

"He kept moving around," Ms. Tiki said. "He was wiggling, dancing. The school system thought he had a behavioral problem so they had him tested. That's when they realized he was gifted."

He was in the third grade.

Around the same time, Ms. Tiki ran into Jai Hinson, president and CEO of Life Force Cultural Arts Academy, an organization that has provided cultural and youth support services to Pinellas County for 15 years. Hinson saw Sir.Brock's natural ability and asked if he could dance with her troupe.

"I was like, yes," Ms. Tiki said. "He was always jumping around somewhere, getting on my nerves, never sitting down. Mama Jai can pull the best out of any child."

Sir.Brock became consumed by dance. African and Caribbean were his specialties. On weekends he traveled to different parts of the state, dancing. He went to Alabama, to New Orleans, dancing. At the Pinellas County Center for the Arts at Gibbs High School, Sir.Brock trained in ballet with Suzanne Pomerantzeff and Patricia Paige. He earned two of the school's highest awards.

At the Boston Conservatory, where only 20 to 25 dancers are chosen out of thousands each year to join the freshman class, Sir.Brock's abilities have shone through. He is in his third year and must maintain a 3.0 grade point average to keep his scholarship, worth $40,000 a year.

"He's very versatile in both ballet and modern, and he has worked very intelligently and artistically in this department," said Yasuko Tokunaga, director of the Dance Division. "He pushes our buttons sometimes, but the talented ones do."

Drive from within

Being a male dancer, especially in ballet, can be difficult.

"In the African-American community, if you were involved in dance, you had to be homosexual or had to have strange tendencies," Hinson said. "But actually, God has given us these magnificent bodies to be able to move and provide all kinds of wonderful expressions."

Sir.Brock said he was teased for dancing. But it didn't matter.

"I never ever focused on the negativity," he said. "Of course, I might get in a little fight on the street, but I'd handle my business and then go back to my dance class. People always pick or whatever, but once they see you in the light, they are like, dang, he is really good."

Sir.Brock is the eldest of three boys, and his father was rarely around, though he now speaks with him regularly. Ms. Tiki had an open-door policy to her home, so there were always other children living there that she was helping to raise and feed with her one salary.

The family moved several times. They lived in St. Petersburg's Lakewood Apartments, in James Park Apartments and on Burlington Avenue.

"Anything we were going through as a family, Sir.Brock would turn around and make it a dance," Ms. Tiki said.

When the family lived in James Park Apartments, Ms. Tiki would sit on the steps and sing. Whatever she was going through, it would be heard in her voice.

"I didn't know it, but Sir.Brock would listen to me singing and create dances," Ms. Tiki said. "He doesn't get upset about things. He just creates dances about them. He takes anything that's a negative in life and uses it as stepping stone. How he does that, I don't know."

Prince of honor

The role of prince for this year's Chocolate Nutcracker couldn't have been more fitting for Sir.Brock. Because Ruth Eckerd Hall decided not to go with the show this year, parents and others in the community pulled together, selling food and T-shirts to make sure that the $100,000 production would hit the stage for the ninth consecutive year.

Sir.Brock knows the importance of giving back to the community. He knows the importance of the arts, especially to the black community. He returns in summer to teach classes.

He knows the importance of Chocolate - the show's name is said with the richness of deep, dark, candy - to the minority dance community.

Coming back to be the prince is not only an honor, it's an obligation.

Sir.Brock understands all of that. But the main thing for now is that he "gets to dance."

At Sunday's rehearsal, another parent grabs a hug. Putting his face in her hands, she tells him that she has watched him dance since he was so-high and that she was thrilled that he was going to be "Chocolate's prince."

Sir.Brock, a bit embarrassed, steps to the side and gives that big smile. The one that makes his eyes squint. He still doesn't understand what the big deal is about being the prince.

PREVIEW

Chocolate Nutcracker

7:30 tonight and 1 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, the Mahaffey Theater, 400 First St. S, St. Petersburg, $27-$47, with discounts for children, seniors and groups. (727) 892-5767 or www.mahaffeytheater.com.

ALSO ON STAGE

Other Nutcrackers

- Orlando Ballet, 8 tonight, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday. Morsani Hall at Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center, 1010 N MacInnes Place, Tampa. $18.50-$54.50. (813) 229-7827; www.tbpac.org.

- Sarasota Ballet, 7 tonight, 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday. Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, 777 N Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. $19-$64. Toll-free 1-800-361-8388; www.vanwezel.org; www.sarasotaballet.org.

[Last modified December 21, 2006, 10:57:36]