Ballet West: Festival Resident Dancers
CHRISTIANA BENNETT has been a Ballet West artist since 1999, and a Principal Dancer since 2004. Christiana is from Massachusetts, and her extensive training includes Pennsylvania Ballet, School of American Ballet and Pacific NW Ballet. Past roles include Aurora/Sleeping Beauty, Juliet/Romeo and Juliet, Odette/Odile in Swan Lake, Myrthe/Giselle, Sugar Plum Fairy/The Nutcracker, Hans van Manen's Black Cake, William Forsythe’s Artifact II and In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated, Bruce Marks' Lark Ascending, and numerous roles from the Balanchine repertoire. Christiana’s portrayal of Caroline in Anthony Tudor’s Lilac Garden has won her international acclaim with her premiere at the Edinburgh International Festival. She is soon to perform Balanchine’s Serenade at the Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C.
CHISTOPHER RUUD began his dance training with San Francisco Ballet School, then at the University of Utah Ballet Department joining Ballet West in 1998 with promotion to Principal in 2004. Roles include Petruchio in Cranko's The Taming of the Shrew; Sigfried, Florimund and Romeo in Jonas Kåge's Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty and Romeo and Juliet; Tudor's The Leaves Are Fading, Tetley’s Rite of Spring, Ben Stevenson’s Cinderella, with additional roles in works by Hans van Manen, Val Caniparoli, William Forsythe, Peter Schaufuss/La Sylphide, and numerous roles from the Balanchine repertoire including Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream. Son of respected dancer and choreographer Tomm Ruud, Christopher is proud to be responsible for his father’s work, setting and performing his father’s ballets such as MOBILE all over the world.
Photo: Christiana Bennett and Christopher Ruud in Ballet West's "The Nutcracker"/ photo by Ryan Galbraith
David Dorfman Dance: Festival Resident Dancers
DAVID DORFMAN is the chair of dance at Connecticut College and artistic director of 20-year-old David Dorfman Dance. He received a Guggenheim fellowship in 2005 to continue his research and choreography about power and powerlessness, activism, dissidence and underground movements - which led to underground, performed by David Dorfman Dance and 25 additional dancers. underground continues to tour internationally and will play at University of Denver in February 2009. The company is now at work on its newest project “Disavowal” inspired by the legacy of radical abolitionist John Brown.
LISA RACE has spent most of her career as a performer, teacher and choreographer in New York, where her dances have been seen at venues ranging from Dance Theater Workshop to Danspace Project. Race Dance has also been seen around the country, in Argentina, Hong Kong and Siberia. Race danced with David Dorfman Dance from 1989-2000, and was honored with a “Bessie” in 1995. Race teaches at Connecticut College and has taught and choreographed at many universities and festivals throughout the world including ImpulsTanz, in Vienna, where she, David and son Samson will be next week.
Photo by Gregory Georges
A native of France, Vincent has performed with dance companies in France, South America, and in the U.S. prior to graduating from Juilliard and receiving his MFA from Ohio State University. He has worked with Anna Sokolow, Paul Taylor, Anna Markar, Remy Charlip, Hector Zaraspe, and many others.Vincent has directed his own modern dance company, Brosseau Danceworks, based in Charlotte, NC from 1992 to 1998. Prior to his present position at Savannah College of Art and Design, Vincent held positions either as faculty or director in the dance programs of the University of California, Santa Barbara, Kent State University, Ohio, Akron University, Ohio, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, DeSales University, Pennsylvania, University of Nevada, Reno, and the University of Wyoming.
A native of Jackson, MS, Mr. Jackson received intensive training while matriculating through prestigious institutions such as the Academic and Performing Arts Complex, Ballet Mississippi, The International Ballet Competition and The Juilliard School. A graduate from the University of Southern Mississippi, he holds a BFA in Dance. As an instructor, Mr. Jackson has taught at various schools and summer workshops throughout the U.S. and abroad. As a professional, he devoted five years to the internationally known modern dance company, Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Ensemble. Lawrence recently received his Master’s of Fine Arts degree from Florida State University.
Susan trained with Willam Christensen at the University of Utah and received BFA and MFA degrees in dance & choreography. Additional training was in Russia, Denmark and England during a year long stay. She performed and choreographed for the Utah Civic Ballet, now Ballet West, and numerous dance and theatre groups in the West before moving to Richmond, VA in 1972. She has been teaching for over 40 years in professional dance organizations and private and public schools. In 1990, she designed and implemented a four-year dance program at Henrico High School Center for the Arts in Richmond. Currently she is on the faculty of the School of Richmond Ballet and the Virginia Commonwealth University's Department of Dance and Choreography.
Born and raised in the Mile-High, Jacob is director of Moraporvida Contemporary Dance, an avant-garde, multicultural repertory company developed from contemporary and traditional dance styles. Jacob’s teaching and choreography combines traditional and contemporary techniques fusing modern, jazz, hip hop, poetry and ethnic movements. Jacob has worked with The Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Ensemble, David Taylor Dance Theatre, Mohawk choreographer Santee Smith Group/Toronto, Kaleidoscope Dance Theatre, Alaska Dance Theatre and Hannah Khan Dance Co. At ADF, Jacob worked with Betty Jones, Nathan Trice, Lisa Race and performed the critically acclaimed “Subverse” with the David Dorfman. Jacob has also worked with Donald Mckayle, Milton Meyers, Betty Jones, Bill T Jones, Ron K. Brown and Eleo Pomare.
Kaye has taught at the Martha Graham School, and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center in NYC. She was both dancer and tour manager for the Martha Graham Ensemble. Ms. Richards received her MFA from the University of Iowa before joining the University of Utah's Modern Dance faculty in 1998. Richards has taught in England, Guyana, Guatemala, Spain, Mexico, and several universities in the USA. In March 2003, Professor Richards presented a solo concert, Shifting Landscapes where she performed four solos choreographed by international renowned choreographers and presented two group works. Richards is the recipient for the University of Utah's 2004/2005 Public Service Professor Award and the College of Fine Arts Faculty Excellence Award in Teaching, Research and Service in 2006.
Keith Saunders: Ballet Faculty
Keith began dancing in 1971 while a student at Harvard. He began his ballet training in 1973 at the National Center for Afro-American Artists in Dorchester, MA. Keith joined Dance Theatre of Harlem in 1975 and continued his development under the tutelage of DTH founders Arthur Mitchell and Karel Shook. At DTH, he became a principal dance artist and performed a wide range of roles throughout the company’s repertoire for more than 17 years. Mr. Saunders was also a member of France’s Ballet du Nord and BalletMet of Columbus, Ohio (where he also served as Education Director in 1989). As a guest artist, he appeared with Boston Repertory Ballet, Maryland Ballet, Eglevsky Ballet, Ballethenic Dance Company, and David Parsons Company, among others. For the past twelve years, Mr. Saunders has been ballet master for Dance Theatre of Harlem.
Ellie Sciarra: Tap Faculty
Ellie conceived, produced and choreographed in part Taps Are Talking: Women in Tap, highlighting the stories of female tap artists. Sciarra is the president of Taps Are Talking, Inc., a non-profit devoted to promoting the art of tap. Sciarra has worked in NYC, Munich, and Amsterdam professionally for television and stage. She trained with Brenda Bufalino, Danny Daniels, Henry LeTang, and Paul Draper. She performed on Dutch television, in Draper on Tap for PBS, in Sondheim’s Follies at Lincoln Center, and in Brenda Bufalino’s The Buffalo Suite in NYC. She toured the U.S. and Europe with NYC TAPworks. Sciarra has been a guest teacher and choreographer at the American College Dance Festival, Univ.of Northern CO, Interlochen Arts Academy, Black Hills Dance Theatre, Colorado Dance Festival, and the New Orleans Jazz Project. In 2008 she was selected to choreograph and perform at the Aspen Dance Connection.