BRADENTON, FL — The moment they learned that Russia had invaded their native Ukraine, the owners of Bradenton’s Russian Ballet School knew they had to rebrand.

On the same day, they decided to change the name of the dance studio to International Ballet of Florida, removing any mention of the country attacking their homeland.

“February 24, the first day of the war,” said Sergiy Mykhaylov.

“As soon as we opened the news that day,” added Darya Fedotova, his wife and co-owner of the studio.

The couple, who were initially friends and peers, met at the Kyiv State Choreographic College in the Ukrainian capital in the late 1980s. There they learned the popular Vaganova method, a style of ballet developed by Russian ballet dancer Agrippina Vaganova.

“That’s why we call our school (the) Russian Ballet School,” Mykhaylov said. “It’s because of our background. It was the Soviet Union then. Everything was Russian then. Now everything is falling apart.”

His wife added: “It was very recognizable. Everyone knows Russian ballet methods. We still teach it, and we still feel like it’s one of the best and we continue to teach from the same way. We just can’t get the name.”

Operating in the downtown university district since 2010, the couple first considered changing the name of the dance studio in 2014, when Russia invaded and annexed Crimea from Ukraine. They gave up on the idea when they realized exactly how much work it would take.

“It’s such a big process, such a difficult thing to do,” Mykhaylov said.

With the recent invasion of Ukraine, however, they couldn’t put it off.

“It’s not easy to make this change,” Fedotova said. “But it’s so important. It’s so embarrassing to have that (old) name. It’s so hard to say it out loud.”

The name change of an established company comes with major updates to social media and its website. They should also review any contracts they entered into under their old name.

And then there’s the publicity for upcoming events. Flyers for their April 3 performance of “Giselle” at the Venice Performing Arts Center had already been printed with their studio’s old name.

The name change is a symbolic gesture for them as they watch the war from afar, speak to friends and family daily about the horrors of the relentless military onslaught, and read the news.

“It’s hard to watch and hard to see the bombs and everything they do to the apartments and the people there,” Fedotova said. “All these bombs with children and women. They keep bombing.”

She added, “It’s just unbelievable. Unbelievable. I’ve never cried so much in my life, and I’ve never seen my husband cry so much. Every day, we’re on the news, every second, and on the phone with our friends.”

There is about a six-hour time difference between Kyiv and Florida, she said. Calls from friends and family usually start coming in around midnight.

“That’s when they start to wake up,” Fedotova said. “We stay up with them for hours, sometimes until six o’clock (in the morning). Then a few hours of sleep and then we come here (to the studio) and it’s the same thing the next day.”

While her parents live in Orlando, her husband’s mother and father are still in Kiev. They have no intention of abandoning their home, she said. “They are old and they don’t want to leave. It’s hard for them to leave.”

Many of their friends have left Kyiv, however, she added. “Some have already moved to Poland,” while others are currently waiting there in western Ukraine with thousands of other refugees.

According to unofficial estimates on Tuesday, 2 million Ukrainians left their homes to escape the bombardments; some have settled in western Ukraine and many others are fleeing to Poland and other neighboring countries.

Refugees are stuck there without basic necessities, she said. “They don’t have much waiting there.”

At the same time, some people they know stayed behind to fight the Russians, including Mykhaylov’s best friend, who leads a civilian militia. They send him money when they can.

The couple are also collecting donations for those leaving Ukraine, ranging from clothes to personal hygiene items. Every day, people show up with bags of donated items piling up in the dance studio lobby. Every few days, the ballet school staff ships them overseas to those in need.

“That’s all we can do,” Fedotova said. “We are here. There is nothing else to do. We pray that the bombing stops. And we pray that they close the skies over Ukraine.”

Despite the bloodshed and violence, there is a silver lining, the couple said. They are amazed at the support they have seen pouring in for Ukraine.

Their students wear the colors of the Ukrainian flag pinned on their clothes and in their hair. And the dance community locally and around the world continues to watch them. They are also touched by the world’s support for their home.

“We want to thank the whole world for their help,” Mykhaylov said.