In this Tuesday, September 19, 2017 photo, principal dancer Ciro Tamayo is helped by costume assistants before a dress rehearsal of Romeo and Juliet in Montevideo, Uruguay. Argentine ballet great Julio Bocca retired a decade ago after a brilliant quarter-century run but he has kept the same passion that he performed on some of the most famous stages to lift the Uruguayan company by attracting prestigious choreographers, instructors and international and local dancers. (Photo by Matilde Campodonico/AP Photo)





In this Friday, September 15, 2017 photo, a dancer puts her ballet shoes on before a dress rehearsal for Romeo and Juliet in Montevideo, Uruguay. About 70 professional dancers in the Uruguayan capital train under the eye of a man who wants to turn the ballet company of this small South American nation into one of the best in the world. (Photo by Matilde Campodonico/AP Photo)





In this Tuesday, September 19, 2017 photo, ballet dancer Acaoa Theophilo puts on makeup before a dress rehearsal of Romeo and Juliet in Montevideo, Uruguay. Uruguay is a small country of 3.3 million people, but its ballet Director Julio Bocca has always said that he wants the local ballet company to be among the world’s top 10. (Photo by Matilde Campodonico/AP Photo)





In this Tuesday, September 12, 2017 photo, dancers rehearse for Romeo and Juliet in Montevideo, Uruguay. Uruguay’s National ballet of the Sodre has bloomed under the helm of Julio Bocca since he took over in 2010. (Photo by Matilde Campodonico/AP Photo)





In this Wednesday, September 6, 2017 photo, ballet dancers Eunsil Kim, left, and Paula Penachio try on their dresses at the costume workshop at the Adela Reta Auditorium in Montevideo, Uruguay. The building also has a carpentry workshop where the set designs are built for performances, which now often sell out. (Photo by Matilde Campodonico/AP Photo)





In this Tuesday, September 12, 2017 photo, a dancer warms up before morning class in Montevideo, Uruguay. Uruguay’s National ballet of the Sodre's classes are held at two halls of mirrored walls in downtown Montevideo, where dancers bend, rise and perform pirouettes Monday through Friday for eight hours at a time. (Photo by Matilde Campodonico/AP Photo)





In this Tuesday, September 12, 2017 photo, principal ballet dancer Gustavo Carvalho enters the stage to rehearse for Romeo and Juliet in Montevideo, Uruguay. Retired Argentine ballet great Julio Bocca announced he would be stepping down as director of the company, but will continue to live in Uruguay and focus fully on teaching the company to realize his dream of molding it into one of the best in the world. (Photo by Matilde Campodonico/AP Photo)





In this Tuesday, September 12, 2017 photo, Director Julio Bocca instructs principal ballet dancer Maria Noel Riccetto during rehearsal for Romeo and Juliet in Montevideo, Uruguay. Bocca recently announced that he would be stepping down as director of Uruguay’s National ballet of the Sodre but that he will continue to live in Uruguay and will focus fully on teaching the company and completing his dream of turning it into one of the best in the world. (Photo by Matilde Campodonico/AP Photo)





In this Tuesday, September 12, 2017 photo, South Korean dancer Eunsil Kim attends rehearse for Romeo and Juliet in Montevideo, Uruguay. Julio Bocca, director of Uruguay’s National ballet of the Sodre, is attracting prestigious choreographers, instructors and international and local dancers to the company as he tries to old it into one of the best in the world. (Photo by Matilde Campodonico/AP Photo)





In this Tuesday, September 19, 2017 photo, Uruguay’s National ballet and orchestra rehearse Romeo and Juliet in Montevideo, Uruguay. During rehearsals, Director Julio Bocca's voice is so low that he uses a microphone so that everyone can hear his instructions. (Photo by Matilde Campodonico/AP Photo)





In this Monday, September 4, 2017 photo, dancers rehearse the Romeo and Juliet show in Montevideo, Uruguay. Uruguay’s National ballet of the Sodre has bloomed under the helm of Argentina's retired dancer Julio Bocca since he took over in 2010. (Photo by Matilde Campodonico/AP Photo)





In this Tuesday, September 12, 2017 photo, ballet master Bruce Sansom, sitting center, give feedback to a dancer rehearsing for Romeo and Juliet in Montevideo, Uruguay. (Photo by Matilde Campodonico/AP Photo)





In this Monday, September 4, 2017 photo, a painter creates a scenic backdrop for the ballet production The Nutcracker at a workshop inside Adela Reta Auditorium in Montevideo, Uruguay. The building also has a wardrobe where colorful costumes are sewn, and a carpentry workshop where the set designs are built for performances, which now often sell out. (Photo by Matilde Campodonico/AP Photo)





In this Friday, September 15, 2017 photo, ballet dancers from Uruguay’s National ballet of the Sodre put on lipstick before a dress rehearsal for Romeo and Juliet in Montevideo, Uruguay. Dancers practice Monday through Friday for eight hours at a time. (Photo by Matilde Campodonico/AP Photo)