There are few things more adorable than the Collage Dance Collective's gaggle of elementary school ballerinas rehearsing for their first recital.

On Wednesday night, this particular group of green-leotarded dancers was holed up at the Buckman Performing Arts Center, practicing their pieces for Escapade, the Collage Dance Collective's recital this weekend at Playhouse on the Square.

While they plié-d and leapt their way through choreography inspired by Dubai, Collage's directors Kevin Thomas and Marcellus Harper gave corrections, demonstrated moves and gently chastised the giggling, fidgeting dancers for not practicing enough at home. Their moves weren't perfectly synced, but the dancers, who are part of Collage's intermediate class, went through every step with gleeful, slightly manic enthusiam.

Kevin Thomas and Marcellus Harper founded Collage Dance Collective in 2004 after the Dance Theatre of Harlem (where Thomas had danced for 10 years) closed. Thomas and Harper moved the collective to Memphis to try to replicate the mission of Dance Theatre of Harlem in the south.

Collage's professional company employs 25 classically trained dancers. Their school, which seeks to teach classical forms of dance to primarily African-American students, offers three levels of ballet instruction to boys and girls during the school year. This year's end of the year recital on Sunday will feature dancers from all of the collective's classes.

Collage Dance School's recital, "Escapade" will be held on Sunday at Playhouse on the Square at 3 p.m. Tickets are $20.