Sarah Tallman

It is with great pride and enthusiasm that Wonderbound nominates Sarah Tallman, Ballet Master of Wonderbound, for the Unsung Heroes in Denver’s Arts Community.

Sarah has been with the organization for 20 years – before Wonderbound was Wonderbound. She joined the root organization of Wonderbound, Ballet Nouveau Colorado, as a dancer in 2004 and was a vital part of the evolution into Wonderbound in 2013. In 2019, Sarah retired from dancing and became Ballet Master for Wonderbound. Throughout her career, she has been a diligent steward for the art of dance – sharing her knowledge with countless dance students, performing for thousands of elementary children in Title 1 schools across the Denver metro area, providing dance experiences for individuals experiencing homelessness, and therapeutic dance for Alzheimer’s patients.

Sarah was in her new role as Ballet Master for Wonderbound for a mere seven months when COVID-19 struck and forever changed the world. As an organization, Wonderbound made the decision to remain fully operational, and did not conduct layoffs, furloughs, or salary/staff cuts. This required superhuman efforts from the entire staff, and Sarah was up to the task. She learned how to edit video on the fly, and this helped enable Wonderbound to produce 167 NEW dance tutorials for children and dance films that the organization provided completely free for all constituencies. Wonderbound also was one of the only performing arts groups in the country to continue providing productions for live, albeit small, audiences, and in two years, the organization produced 176 performances. All this work required enormous commitment, and Sarah rose to the occasion each and every day.

Wonderbound has experienced its share of challenges, and as if the pandemic was not enough, in November 2020, the facility the organization was renting was severely vandalized – forcing Wonderbound’s immediate need to relocate. In this dire moment, Sarah brought her immense agility and grit into the situation and was pivotal in ensuring the organization’s survival.

Sarah is brilliant, courageous, and generous, and her selfless dedication to the art of dance and to serving the community through this extraordinary art form is unparalleled.

We at Wonderbound truly believe that Sarah’s 20 years of service deserves to be recognized.

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*Each organization nominated their honoree with an essay. Those essays are posted here, as submitted, to maintain the organization's unique voice and authenticity.