There’s something about ballet that feels otherworldly. The way dancers defy gravity, the way movement transforms into storytelling, the way—if you blink—you might miss the sheer strength behind the beauty.
Amber Michalik, artistic director of the Macomb Ballet Company and owner of Ann Parsley School of Dance, is the sheer strength behind the beauty of this Macomb County institution. But believe it or not, though Amber’s heart has been beating for dance virtually her whole life, it didn’t always beat for ballet.
“I didn’t even start until I was 11 or 12,” Amber says, laughing. “I was into jazz and tap. My studio owner told me, ‘It’s time. You really need to take ballet.’ And I was like, ‘Fine, I’ll cave.’ And then—I fell in love.”
Falling in love with ballet is one thing. Carrying its legacy is another.
Amber was 25, just married, still figuring out life, when Ann Parsley, the previous owner of the studio and artistic director of the company—and Amber’s mentor—said she was moving to Texas.
“When I was a young dancer,” Amber tells me, “and Ann asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I told her, ‘I want to be you.’ And I couldn’t imagine a world where this company and this studio didn’t exist. So we took every bit of money we’d saved from our wedding, we gave up buying a house, and we bought the studio instead. And I said, ‘I’ll do my best to carry the torch.’”
That torch—ballet's ability to transform young lives—runs deeper than technique. It’s in the discipline, the sacrifice, the will to prepare more than you ever want to.
And it's in the way the company becomes a home for its dancers.
“We had a student who lost a parent,” Amber recalls. “The way this community surrounded her—paid for her pointe shoes, paid for her classes, made sure she could keep dancing—it was unbelievable. This company, this studio, it’s a family. That’s the part I’m most proud of.”
Amber wants ballet to resonate with a new generation. For the Macomb Ballet Company, which celebrates its half-century anniversary next season, that means evolving.
“I’m always looking to make ballet accessible. People think it’s stuffy or slow—I get it. So we add humor—because who doesn’t like to laugh? We make it fun. I don’t want ballet to be something you need to understand. I want it to be something you just feel.”
When the company finally got the chance to perform Peter Pan—a vision Amber had held for 20 years—she knew they had to make it unforgettable. They did.
“We flew,” she says simply. “We made the dancers fly. I don’t usually take the time to reflect, but I get choked up. We did it. After COVID, after everything, we actually did it. We flew.”
But making the impossible possible takes more than vision—it also requires support. As a nonprofit, the Macomb Ballet Company depends on sponsors and donations to give young dancers and audiences the experience and the magic of ballet. Amber sees the studio and the company as more than places where kids learn to dance. They’re places where they learn to rise.
“It’s literally on our wall: We rise by lifting others,” Amber shares. “That’s what dance should be. It should build you up.”
And now, as Amber looks to the future, that’s the legacy she wants to protect. Not just technique, not just tradition, but the very soul of what ballet can be: uplifting.
“I’ve never really felt like I own this,” Amber admits. “I’ve always felt like I’m just carrying it forward, holding onto it until I can pass it to the next person who will take care of it.”
For those like Amber—who want art, community, and the power of movement to thrive for generation after generation—Macomb Ballet Company is actively seeking sponsors who want to be part of something greater. The Macomb Ballet gives its young dancers a community who believes in them. When people believe in you, you believe in you.
And when you believe in you, then just like Peter Pan, you can fly.
To support the Macomb Ballet Company as a sponsor or donor, visit MacombBallet.org or call (586) 843-3374.
This summer at MBC + APSD:
- Summer Classes: June 17-July 24
- Masters Week: July 28-August 1
- Open House: July 30
- Ballet Boot Camp: August 12-14
- MBC 25/26 Auditions: Aug 14 + 21
“It’s literally on our wall: We rise by lifting others. That’s what dance should be. It should build you up.”