This is a return trip to New York City, having just completed the summer intensive program at the American Ballet Theatre (ABT) there. “At 12, Emma Reese was eligible for a summer intensive at big city ballets around the country,” said her dad, Alton Ballance. Emma Reese Ballance strikes a pose in New York’s Central Park. After that, she decided to focus on ballet and began intensive ballet training at age 10. Emma Reese, right, talks about her ballet career with her dad, Alton Ballance.