American Teen Ballerina Shines in Moscow

LONDON, June 25, 2009 — -- California teeanger Hannah Schiller arrived in Moscow a little more than two weeks ago with no expectations. This was the 11th edition of the International Ballet Competition, the most prestigious ballet competition in the world hosted every four years since 1969 by Moscow's famed Bolshoi Theatre -- the epicenter of ballet.

Schiller, 16, of Orange County, was simply there to experience the competition that is traditionally dominated by Russians and judged by the biggest names in ballet -- what her coach calls "the Olympics of ballet."

But two weeks later, she emerged with a silver medal in the junior solo category, propelling her to the top of the international ballet world and making her goal of joining a professional company when she finishes high school all but assured.

Every four years, over 100 ballerinas and danseurs (male ballet dancers) from around the world descend on Moscow to compete against and be judged by the best. They're split up by juniors (under 18) and seniors (up to 26), as well as solo and duet performances.

"To take part in and to win the competition is very important for the young dancers," said Valeria Uralskaya, editor-in-chief of Ballet magazine and a competition official. "It gives them their first international recognition. It gives them the brand name. It helps their future career."

"The dancers are really amazing," Schiller's mother Lorna told ABC News. "We never really expected that there would be a placement in the top three. That wasn't the goal at her age. The goal was that she would go experience the competition, maybe make it to the second or third round. We were happy about that, but we did not go in expecting that she'd be a major contender for the top three spots."

A Teenager Devoted to Dance

Uralskaya praised the three Americans taking part in this year's competition, saying it was one of the best years for American dancers. But she noted that they lacked a certain emotion in their performances, "What we call 'Russian soul."

One who clearly had soul in her movements was Angelina Vorontsova, a 17-year-old Russian and eventual gold medal winner. She was the field's front-runner, a graduate of the Bolshoi Academy who will now join the renowned theater as a professional dancer.

Schiller said the language barrier prevented the two from much contact but heaped praise on her abilities and humility saying, "She was so amazing. ... She really deserved it."

Competing at this level as a young dancer naturally comes at a cost to a normal teenage life. Vorontsova said she is exhausted after the competition and graduating from the academy, but has no time for a break as she moves on the next stage in her dancing career. Ballet is her life and she said it was always a dream to participate in this competition, but she never imagined she'd win it.

Schiller has been dancing since she was 6, and now practices seven days a week for more than 30 hours, making normal schooling and social life impossible. Nevertheless, she has maintained a 4.0 GPA through a combination of charter and home schooling. Though her parents know college is not in her immediate future, they have placed a strong emphasis on education so she has something to fall back on.

Schiller admits that all of her friends are dancers, many around the globe who only see each other at international competitions and productions. They stay in touch through Facebook and other social networking sites, often doing away with the pesky language barrier with tools like Google Translate.

The next step isn't certain, but she has placed her orders for tutus for the next round of competitions in places like New York, Bulgaria and Switzerland, and with her recent success in Moscow her future in ballet looks very bright.

Tanya Stukalova contributed to the reporting of this story from Moscow.