Photos show Baghdad Ballet Academy students taking the stage at Baghdad's Al-Sinbad Theater

BAGHDAD (AP) — Students from Baghdad’s Ballet Academy performed a production titled “Mermaid” before an audience at Al-Sinbad Theater on Friday.

Wearing colorful costumes, dancers of different ages presented solo and ensemble routines, moving through choreographed formations, leaps and turns under blue and purple stage lights. The public performance gave the students an opportunity to showcase their training on a Baghdad stage.