Ocean creatures will leave the water behind and sky creatures will come down to earth as the Central Pennsylvania Dance Workshop (CPDW) performs their annual spring show 7 p.m. Sunday at State College Area High School South Auditorium.

"Sea and Sky" is the theme of this year's performance, with costumes and music all relating in some way to the ocean or things that fill the sky, from octupi to swans to planets.

Jill Brighton, director of CPDW, said the faculty brainstormed to come up with a theme for the all-school performance that would work for their youngest dancers (ages 3 to 4), as well as for their adult dancers.

"We always try to find something flexible enough for everyone to work with," Brighton said.

The Fraser Street Dancers, an advanced company for students considering a professional career in dance, will also perform at Sunday's show. Made up of nine members, the company will present original choreography from their repertoire in diverse dance styles.

"It's a select group of students who really want to make a time commitment and dance," she said.

Brighton said the spring show, which features ballet, jazz, tap and modern styles, always draws a good crowd and allows the dancers a chance to see what the other classes are doing.

Of the 150-200 members of CPDW, about half are Penn State students, including Jordynn Jack (graduate-English).

Jack is a member of the school's advanced ballet class, which will be dancing to a piece from The Planets, composed by Gustav Holst.

With the end of the semester crunch already here, Jack said fitting in rehearsal is tough but is always a nice break from school.

"I like ballet because it requires you to think only about what you're doing," Jack said. "I'm not worrying about school when I dance. It leaves my mind."

Jack said the performance would be fun for students who need a little break from studying.

Another student involved with CPDW, Sarah Boies (sophomore-public relations), teaches jazz and tap for children, as well as modern and jazz for adults.

One of her children's classes will be performing to Madonna's "Ray of Light" and will be dancing as breaths of fresh air.

Boies will also get her chance to perform when she and the rest of the faculty take the stage on Sunday, dancing together as a constellation.

"The faculty dance is more serious this year," Boies said. "We're dancing to show off our technique learned from throughout the years."

Boies said she is thankful for the time she gets to spend at the studio and that she has always had a passion for dance.

"It's very spiritual when I perform and I think that's projected onto the audience," she said. "It's kind of like having a good cry."