Choreography by George Balanchine*
Music by Charles Gounod

Premiere: May 15, 1980 | New York City Ballet New York State Theater

Staged by Kyra Nichols and Deborah Wingert
David Neely, Conductor
Christian Claessens, Ballet Master
Sarah Wroth, Ballet Master

Claudia Rhett and Anderson Da Silva

Julia Fleming

Natalie Hedrick, Mary Kate Shearer

Elizabeth Corsig, Rachel Gehr, Victoria Manning, Ginabel Peterson Padilla

Sarah Benson, Gianna Biondo, Jadyn Dahlberg, Belen Guzman, Gabrielle Harris, Morgan Jankowski, Alexandra Jones, Nicole Langway, Paityn Lauzon, Alyssa Lavroff, Murray McCormack, Mairead Moore, Nadia Tomasini, Alexandra Willson, Daisy Ye, Cecilia Zanone

In 1925, Balanchine choreographed dances for a production of Gounod’s Faust given by the Opéra de Monte-Carlo; they were danced by Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes. He made dances for other productions of the opera in 1935, when he was ballet master for the Metropolitan Opera, and in 1945 for the Opera Nacional, Mexico City. Walpurgisnacht Ballet was choreographed for a 1975 production of Faust by the Théâtre National de l’Opéra, danced by the Paris Opera Ballet. The New York City Ballet premiere was the first presentation of the choreography as an independent work.

The Walpurgisnacht scene occurs at the beginning of the opera’s last act, when Mephistopheles brings Faust to watch the traditional celebration on the eve of May Day, when the souls of the dead are released to wander at will. Although the ballet does not depict Walpurgisnacht per se, it does build on a sense of joyful revelry.

Charles François Gounod (1818-1893) was a central figure in French music during the third quarter of the nineteenth century; his style influenced the next generation of French composers including Bizet, Fauré, and Massenet. Faust, produced in 1859 (the ballet music was added in 1869) made Gounod’s reputation. Faust was drastically different from French opera of the previous 30 years because of its lighter style and sentiment, which relied less on the spectacular and more on the delineation of character through the music. Gounod wrote other operas, none as successful as Faust, and other forms of music, including the Symphony No. 1 in D Major (1855) used by Balanchine for his Gounod Symphony.

The performance of Walpurgisnacht, a Balanchine® Ballet, is presented by arrangement with ©The George Balanchine Trust and has been produced in accordance with the Balanchine Style® and Balanchine Technique® Service standards established and provided by the Trust.

*©The George Balanchine Trust

Choreography by Jerome Robbins
Music by Giuseppe Verdi

Premiere: January 18, 1979 | New York City Ballet New York State Theater

Staged by Kyra Nichols
David Neely, Conductor
Christian Claessens, Ballet Master

Marissa Arnold and Sam Epstein

Colin Canavan, Jack Grohmann, Darren Hsu, Bradley Streetman

When opera was presented in Paris in the late nineteenth century, the composer was obliged to include a ballet at the beginning of the third act, whether or not it had anything to do with the plot of the opera. Usually it didn’t, but it gave the Jockey Club, a group of wealthy subscribers, a chance to look over their favorite beautiful ladies of the ballet at a convenient time of the evening, and these patrons were attentively in their seats for the ballet, if not for the rest of the opera. The tradition of the third act divertissement was so firmly established that when Wagner put his “Venusberg” ballet at the very beginning of Act I of Tannhäuser, there were such forcible protests by the Jockey Club that the whole opera was nearly withdrawn.

Fortunately for us, Verdi was less revolutionary about Parisian conventions and composed many third-act opera ballets. Although seldom included in today’s productions, they contain some of the most delightful dance music of the period. For I Vespri Siciliani, he devised a ballet called “The Four Seasons.” His libretto called for Janus, the God of New Year, to inaugurate a series of dances by each of the seasons in turn. Verdi’s notes suggest such notions as ballerinas warming themselves in Winter by dancing, Spring bringing on warm breezes, indolent Summer ladies being surprised by an Autumnal faun, etc. The present ballet follows his general plan. The original score is augmented by a few selections of his ballet music from I Lombardi and Il Trovatore.

Spring premiered in 1979 as a part of Jerome Robbins’ Four Seasons. Jacobs School of Music professor Kyra Nichols was a member of the original cast.

The performance of Spring is by permission of the Jerome Robbins Trust.

Choreography by Nicole Haskins
Music by Antonín Dvořák

World Premiere

Staged by Nicole Haskins
David Neely, Conductor
Sasha Janes, Ballet Master
Jason Orlenko, Costume Designer

Anna Barnes, Mason Bassett, Sophia Brodin, Lexi Eicher, Jared Kelly, Robert Mack, Sterling Manka, Keith Newman, Brandon Silverman, Lauren Smolka, Caroline Tonks, Anna Lisa Wilkins

Nicole Haskins is a sought-after choreographer across the country known for her musicality, intricate formations, and seamless merging of ballet technique with contemporary organic movement. Perpetuality was inspired by Dvořák’s emotional and luscious score. The repetitive melodies that develop and deepen throughout the piece remind us that we must take the time to stop and reflect in order to see the variance and vibrancy of life. The Jacobs School of Music ballet majors helped inspire movement as well as add to the depth of the piece. Haskins utilized their ability to explore, strive, and be vulnerable throughout the creation process.

Choreography by Jerome Robbins
Music by Fryderyk Chopin

Premiere: March 6, 1956 | New York City Ballet City Center of Music and Drama, New York

Staged by Robert LaFosse
David Neely, Conductor
Cameron Grant, Piano
Michael Vernon, Ballet Master
Sarah Wroth, Ballet Master

Anna Lisa Wilkins and Brandon Silverman

Kyra Muttilainen

Sam Epstein, Lilly Leech, Camille Kellems,Robert Mack, Sterling Manka, Keith Newman, Mary Kate Shearer

Colin Canavan, Anderson Da Silva, Jared Kelly, Andrew Rossi

Grace Armstrong, Haley Baker, Gianna Biondo, Rachel Gehr, Alexandra Jones, Andrew Playford

Choreographer Jerome Robbins once wrote, “One of the pleasures of attending a concert is the freedom to lose oneself in listening to the music. Quite often, unconsciously, mental pictures and images form, and the patterns and paths of these reveries are influenced by the music itself, or its program notes, or by the personal dreams, problems, and fantasies of the listener. Chopin’s music, in particular, has been subject to fanciful ‘program’ names, such as the ‘Butterfly Etude,’ the ‘Minute Waltz,’ the ‘Raindrop Prelude,’ etc.” The Concert was choreographed in 1956 and serves as a tribute not only to the perfect comedic timing of this revolutionary choreographer, but also the stress he placed on illustrating natural relationships onstage. At this all-Chopin piano concert, each character listens to and muses on the music being played, allowing all of their whimsical fantasies to play out for the audience. Hilarity ensues as the imperfections of some of these natural relationships unfold with lighthearted imagination.

The performance of The Concert (or The Perils of Everybody) is by permission of the Jerome Robbins Trust.

Choreography by George Balanchine*
Music by Charles Gounod

Premiere: May 15, 1908 | New York City Ballet New York State Theater

Staged by Kyra Nichols and Deborah Wingert
David Neely, Conductor
Christian Claessens, Ballet Master
Sarah Wroth, Ballet Master

Kyra Muttilainen and Mark Lambert

Rachel Schultz

Grace Armstrong, Lily Bines

Jadyn Dahlberg, Kaylee Grippando, Sarah Young, Cecilia Zanone

Elizabeth Barnes, Sarah Benson, Gianna Biondo, Alexis Breen, Mikayla Geir, Belen Guzman, Gabrielle Harris, Alexandra Jones, Nicole Langway, Paityn Lauzon, Alyssa Lavroff, Murray McCormack, Bryanna Mitchell, Mairead Moore, Nadia Tomasini, Daisy Ye

In 1925, Balanchine choreographed dances for a production of Gounod’s Faust given by the Opéra de Monte-Carlo; they were danced by Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes. He made dances for other productions of the opera in 1935, when he was ballet master for the Metropolitan Opera, and in 1945 for the Opera Nacional, Mexico City. Walpurgisnacht Ballet was choreographed for a 1975 production of Faust by the Théâtre National de l’Opéra, danced by the Paris Opera Ballet. The New York City Ballet premiere was the first presentation of the choreography as an independent work.

The Walpurgisnacht scene occurs at the beginning of the opera’s last act, when Mephistopheles brings Faust to watch the traditional celebration on the eve of May Day, when the souls of the dead are released to wander at will. Although the ballet does not depict Walpurgisnacht per se, it does build on a sense of joyful revelry.

Charles François Gounod (1818-1893) was a central figure in French music during the third quarter of the nineteenth century; his style influenced the next generation of French composers including Bizet, Fauré, and Massenet. Faust, produced in 1859 (the ballet music was added in 1869) made Gounod’s reputation. Faust was drastically different from French opera of the previous 30 years because of its lighter style and sentiment, which relied less on the spectacular and more on the delineation of character through the music. Gounod wrote other operas, none as successful as Faust, and other forms of music, including the Symphony No. 1 in D Major (1855) used by Balanchine for his Gounod Symphony.

The performance of Walpurgisnacht, a Balanchine® Ballet, is presented by arrangement with ©The George Balanchine Trust and has been produced in accordance with the Balanchine Style® and Balanchine Technique® Service standards established and provided by the Trust.

*©The George Balanchine Trust

Choreography by Jerome Robbins
Music by Giuseppe Verdi

Premiere: January 18, 1979 | New York City Ballet New York State Theater

Staged by Kyra Nichols
David Neely, Conductor
Christian Claessens, Ballet Master

Camille Kellems and Andrew Rossi

Reece Conrad, Keith Newman, Cameron Pelton, Andrew Playford

When opera was presented in Paris in the late nineteenth century, the composer was obliged to include a ballet at the beginning of the third act, whether or not it had anything to do with the plot of the opera. Usually it didn’t, but it gave the Jockey Club, a group of wealthy subscribers, a chance to look over their favorite beautiful ladies of the ballet at a convenient time of the evening, and these patrons were attentively in their seats for the ballet, if not for the rest of the opera. The tradition of the third act divertissement was so firmly established that when Wagner put his “Venusberg” ballet at the very beginning of Act I of Tannhäuser, there were such forcible protests by the Jockey Club that the whole opera was nearly withdrawn.

Fortunately for us, Verdi was less revolutionary about Parisian conventions and composed many third-act opera ballets. Although seldom included in today’s productions, they contain some of the most delightful dance music of the period. For I Vespri Siciliani, he devised a ballet called “The Four Seasons.” His libretto called for Janus, the God of New Year, to inaugurate a series of dances by each of the seasons in turn. Verdi’s notes suggest such notions as ballerinas warming themselves in Winter by dancing, Spring bringing on warm breezes, indolent Summer ladies being surprised by an Autumnal faun, etc. The present ballet follows his general plan. The original score is augmented by a few selections of his ballet music from I Lombardi and Il Trovatore.

Spring premiered in 1979 as a part of Jerome Robbins’ Four Seasons. Jacobs School of Music professor Kyra Nichols was a member of the original cast.

The performance of Spring is by permission of the Jerome Robbins Trust.

Choreography by Nicole Haskins
Music by Antonín Dvořák

World Premiere

Staged by Nicole Haskins
David Neely, Conductor
Sasha Janes, Ballet Master

Jason Orlenko, Costume Designer

Haley Baker, Colin Canavan, Claire Donovan, Lexi Eicher,
Kaylee Grippando, Darren Hsu, Jared Kelly, Lilly Leech, Robert Mack, Bryanna Mitchell, Andrew Playford, Benjamin Streetman

Nicole Haskins is a sought-after choreographer across the country known for her musicality, intricate formations, and seamless merging of ballet technique with contemporary organic movement. Perpetuality was inspired by Dvořák’s emotional and luscious score. The repetitive melodies that develop and deepen throughout the piece remind us that we must take the time to stop and reflect in order to see the variance and vibrancy of life. The Jacobs School of Music ballet majors helped inspire movement as well as add to the depth of the piece. Haskins utilized their ability to explore, strive, and be vulnerable throughout the creation process.

Choreography by Jerome Robbins
Music by Fryderyk Chopin

Premiere: March 6, 1956 | New York City Ballet City Center of Music and Drama, New York

Staged by Robert LaFosse
David Neely, Conductor
Cameron Grant, Piano
Michael Vernon, Ballet Master
Sarah Wroth, Ballet Master

Victoria Manning and Mason Bassett

Sarah Young

Marissa Arnold, Sophia Brodin, Reece Conrad, Lexi Eicher, Jack Grohmann, Mark Lambert, Robert Mack

Colin Canavan, Cameron Pelton, Andrew Playford, Bradley Streetman

Lily Bines, Alexis Breen, Mark Lambert, Ginabel Peterson Padilla, Andrew Rossi, Rachel Schultz, Lauren Smolka

Choreographer Jerome Robbins once wrote, “One of the pleasures of attending a concert is the freedom to lose oneself in listening to the music. Quite often, unconsciously, mental pictures and images form, and the patterns and paths of these reveries are influenced by the music itself, or its program notes, or by the personal dreams, problems, and fantasies of the listener. Chopin’s music, in particular, has been subject to fanciful ‘program’ names, such as the ‘Butterfly Etude,’ the ‘Minute Waltz,’ the ‘Raindrop Prelude,’ etc.” The Concert was choreographed in 1956 and serves as a tribute not only to the perfect comedic timing of this revolutionary choreographer, but also the stress he placed on illustrating natural relationships onstage. At this all-Chopin piano concert, each character listens to and muses on the music being played, allowing all of their whimsical fantasies to play out for the audience. Hilarity ensues as the imperfections of some of these natural relationships unfold with lighthearted imagination.

The performance of The Concert (or The Perils of Everybody) is by permission of the Jerome Robbins Trust.

Choreography by George Balanchine*
Music by Charles Gounod

Premiere: May 15, 1908 | New York City Ballet New York State Theater

Staged by Kyra Nichols and Deborah Wingert
David Neely, Conductor
Christian Claessens, Ballet Master
Sarah Wroth, Ballet Master

Claudia Rhett and Anderson Da Silva

Julia Fleming

Natalie Hedrick, Mary Kate Shearer

Elizabeth Corsig, Rachel Gehr, Victoria Manning, Ginabel Peterson Padilla

Sarah Benson, Gianna Biondo, Jadyn Dahlberg, Belen Guzman, Gabrielle Harris, Morgan Jankowski, Alexandra Jones, Nicole Langway, Paityn Lauzon, Alyssa Lavroff, Murray McCormack, Bryanna Mitchell, Mairead Moore, Alexandra Willson, Daisy Ye, Cecilia Zanone

In 1925, Balanchine choreographed dances for a production of Gounod’s Faust given by the Opéra de Monte-Carlo; they were danced by Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes. He made dances for other productions of the opera in 1935, when he was ballet master for the Metropolitan Opera, and in 1945 for the Opera Nacional, Mexico City. Walpurgisnacht Ballet was choreographed for a 1975 production of Faust by the Théâtre National de l’Opéra, danced by the Paris Opera Ballet. The New York City Ballet premiere was the first presentation of the choreography as an independent work.

The Walpurgisnacht scene occurs at the beginning of the opera’s last act, when Mephistopheles brings Faust to watch the traditional celebration on the eve of May Day, when the souls of the dead are released to wander at will. Although the ballet does not depict Walpurgisnacht per se, it does build on a sense of joyful revelry.

Charles François Gounod (1818-1893) was a central figure in French music during the third quarter of the nineteenth century; his style influenced the next generation of French composers including Bizet, Fauré, and Massenet. Faust, produced in 1859 (the ballet music was added in 1869) made Gounod’s reputation. Faust was drastically different from French opera of the previous 30 years because of its lighter style and sentiment, which relied less on the spectacular and more on the delineation of character through the music. Gounod wrote other operas, none as successful as Faust, and other forms of music, including the Symphony No. 1 in D Major (1855) used by Balanchine for his Gounod Symphony.

The performance of Walpurgisnacht, a Balanchine® Ballet, is presented by arrangement with ©The George Balanchine Trust and has been produced in accordance with the Balanchine Style® and Balanchine Technique® Service standards established and provided by the Trust.

*©The George Balanchine Trust

Choreography by Jerome Robbins
Music by Giuseppe Verdi

Premiere: January 18, 1979 | New York City Ballet New York State Theater

Staged by Kyra Nichols
David Neely, Conductor
Christian Claessens, Ballet Master

Marissa Arnold and Sam Epstein

Colin Canavan, Jack Grohmann, Darren Hsu, Bradley Streetman

When opera was presented in Paris in the late nineteenth century, the composer was obliged to include a ballet at the beginning of the third act, whether or not it had anything to do with the plot of the opera. Usually it didn’t, but it gave the Jockey Club, a group of wealthy subscribers, a chance to look over their favorite beautiful ladies of the ballet at a convenient time of the evening, and these patrons were attentively in their seats for the ballet, if not for the rest of the opera. The tradition of the third act divertissement was so firmly established that when Wagner put his “Venusberg” ballet at the very beginning of Act I of Tannhäuser, there were such forcible protests by the Jockey Club that the whole opera was nearly withdrawn.

Fortunately for us, Verdi was less revolutionary about Parisian conventions and composed many third-act opera ballets. Although seldom included in today’s productions, they contain some of the most delightful dance music of the period. For I Vespri Siciliani, he devised a ballet called “The Four Seasons.” His libretto called for Janus, the God of New Year, to inaugurate a series of dances by each of the seasons in turn. Verdi’s notes suggest such notions as ballerinas warming themselves in Winter by dancing, Spring bringing on warm breezes, indolent Summer ladies being surprised by an Autumnal faun, etc. The present ballet follows his general plan. The original score is augmented by a few selections of his ballet music from I Lombardi and Il Trovatore.

Spring premiered in 1979 as a part of Jerome Robbins’ Four Seasons. Jacobs School of Music professor Kyra Nichols was a member of the original cast.

The performance of Spring is by permission of the Jerome Robbins Trust.

Choreography by Nicole Haskins
Music by Antonín Dvořák

World Premiere

Staged by Nicole Haskins
David Neely, Conductor
Sasha Janes, Ballet Master
Jason Orlenko, Costume Designer

Anna Barnes, Mason Bassett, Sophia Brodin, Lexi Eicher, Jared Kelly, Robert Mack, Sterling Manka, Keith Newman, Brandon Silverman, Lauren Smolka, Caroline Tonks, Anna Lisa Wilkins

Nicole Haskins is a sought-after choreographer across the country known for her musicality, intricate formations, and seamless merging of ballet technique with contemporary organic movement. Perpetuality was inspired by Dvořák’s emotional and luscious score. The repetitive melodies that develop and deepen throughout the piece remind us that we must take the time to stop and reflect in order to see the variance and vibrancy of life. The Jacobs School of Music ballet majors helped inspire movement as well as add to the depth of the piece. Haskins utilized their ability to explore, strive, and be vulnerable throughout the creation process.

Choreography by Jerome Robbins
Music by Fryderyk Chopin

Premiere: March 6, 1956 | New York City Ballet City Center of Music and Drama, New York

Staged by Robert LaFosse
David Neely, Conductor
Cameron Grant, Piano
Michael Vernon, Ballet Master
Sarah Wroth, Ballet Master

Anna Lisa Wilkins and Brandon Silverman

Kyra Muttilainen

Sam Epstein, Jack Grohmann, Camille Kellems, Lilly Leech, Robert Mack, Keith Newman, Mary Kate Shearer

Jared Kelly, Andrew Rossi, Colin Canavan, Anderson Da Silva

Grace Armstrong, Haley Baker, Gianna Biondo, Rachel Gehr, Alexandra Jones, Andrew Playford

Choreographer Jerome Robbins once wrote, “One of the pleasures of attending a concert is the freedom to lose oneself in listening to the music. Quite often, unconsciously, mental pictures and images form, and the patterns and paths of these reveries are influenced by the music itself, or its program notes, or by the personal dreams, problems, and fantasies of the listener. Chopin’s music, in particular, has been subject to fanciful ‘program’ names, such as the ‘Butterfly Etude,’ the ‘Minute Waltz,’ the ‘Raindrop Prelude,’ etc.” The Concert was choreographed in 1956 and serves as a tribute not only to the perfect comedic timing of this revolutionary choreographer, but also the stress he placed on illustrating natural relationships onstage. At this all-Chopin piano concert, each character listens to and muses on the music being played, allowing all of their whimsical fantasies to play out for the audience. Hilarity ensues as the imperfections of some of these natural relationships unfold with lighthearted imagination.

The performance of The Concert (or The Perils of Everybody) is by permission of the Jerome Robbins Trust.

Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, George Balanchine is regarded as the foremost contemporary choreographer in the world of ballet. He came to the United States in late 1933, at the age of 29, accepting the invitation of the young American arts patron Lincoln Kirstein (1907-96), whose great passions included the dream of creating a ballet company in America. At Balanchine’s behest, Kirstein was also prepared to support the formation of an American academy of ballet that would eventually rival the long-established schools of Europe. This was the School of American Ballet, founded in 1934, the first product of the Balanchine-Kirstein collaboration. Several ballet companies directed by the two were created and dissolved in the years that followed, while Balanchine found other outlets for his choreography. Eventually, with a performance on October 11, 1948, New York City Ballet was born. Balanchine served as its ballet master and principal choreographer from 1948 until his death in 1983. Balanchine’s more than 400 dance works include Serenade (1934), Concerto Barocco (1941), Le Palais de Cristal, later renamed Symphony in C (1947), Orpheus (1948), The Nutcracker (1954), Agon (1957), Symphony in Three Movements (1972), Stravinsky Violin Concerto (1972), Vienna Waltzes (1977), Ballo della Regina (1978), and Mozartiana (1981). His final ballet, a new version of Stravinsky’s Variations for Orchestra, was created in 1982. He also choreographed for films, operas, revues, and musicals. Among his best-known dances for the stage is “Slaughter on Tenth Avenue,” originally created for Broadway’s On Your Toes (1936). The musical was later made into a movie. A major artistic figure of the twentieth century, Balanchine revolutionized the look of classical ballet. Taking classicism as his base, he heightened, quickened, expanded, streamlined, and even inverted the fundamentals of the 400-year-old language of academic dance. This had an inestimable influence on the growth of dance in America. Although at first his style seemed particularly suited to the energy and speed of American dancers, especially those he trained, his ballets are now performed by all the major classical ballet companies throughout the world.

Nicole Haskins is a sought-after choreographer across the country known for her musicality, intricate formations, and seamlessly merging ballet technique with contemporary organic movements. While dancing 14 years as a professional dancer with Washington Ballet, Smuin Contemporary Ballet, Sacramento Ballet, and Amy Seiwert’s Imagery, her choreography has been commissioned by Richmond Ballet, Oregon Ballet Theatre, Sacramento Ballet, Dayton Ballet, Amy Seiwert’s Imagery, the National Choreographic Initiative, and Smuin Contemporary Ballet. Her works have been presented at the Los Angeles Dance Invitational and McCallum Theater’s Dancing Under the Stars Choreographic Competition. In 2017, she was one of three winners of Oregon Ballet Theatre’s Choreography XX competition. This year, the New York Choreographic Institute, affiliated with New York City Ballet, awarded her its Commission Grant, for her premiere of Requiem at Richmond Ballet. Haskins had previously participated in the Institute’s Spring Session in New York and received its Fellowship Grant for a new creation at Sacramento Ballet.

Born on October 11, 1918, in New York City, Jerome Robbins is world renowned for his work as a choreographer of ballets, as well as his work as a director and choreographer in theater, movies, and television. His Broadway shows include On the Town, Billion Dollar Baby, High Button Shoes, West Side Story, The King and I, Gypsy, Peter Pan, Miss Liberty, Call Me Madam, and Fiddler on the Roof. His last Broadway production, Jerome Robbins’ Broadway, in 1989, won six Tony Awards, including Best Musical and Best Director. Among the more than 60 ballets he created are Fancy Free, Afternoon of a Faun, The Concert, Dances at a Gathering, In the Night, In G Major, Other Dances, Glass Pieces, and Ives, Songs, which are in the repertories of New York City Ballet and other major dance companies throughout the world. His last ballets include A Suite of Dances, created for Mikhail Baryshnikov (1994), 2 & 3 Part Inventions (1994), West Side Story Suite (1995), and Brandenburg (1996). In addition to two Academy Awards for the film West Side Story, Robbins received four Tony Awards, five Donaldson Awards, two Emmy Awards, the Screen Directors’ Guild Award, and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. He was a 1981 Kennedy Center Honors Recipient and was awarded the French Chevalier dans l’Ordre National de la Legion d’Honneur.

David Neely maintains a lively career in concert and opera alongside an active teaching schedule. Music director and principal conductor of Des Moines Metro Opera since 2012, he has elevated the 45-year-old company’s musical profile with acclaimed performances of a broad range of repertoire, such as Falstaff, Elektra, Peter Grimes, Dead Man Walking, Jenůfa, Macbeth, Don Giovanni, and La Fanciulla del West. Neely’s recent performances of Britten’s Billy Budd and Puccini’s Turandot were praised in the Chicago Tribune and Opera News, and his televised Manon for Iowa Public Television was awarded an Emmy by the Upper Midwest Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. Neely conducts frequently for Sarasota Opera, having led nine productions there since 2006, most recently, an acclaimed production of Dialogues of the Carmelites. This past year, he led concerts with the Portland Symphony Orchestra and the orchestra of Roosevelt University. Prominent instrumentalists with whom he has collaborated include Joshua Roman, Bella Hristova, Benjamin Beilman, Rainer Honeck, Nicholas Daniel, Delfeayo Marsalis, Phillippe Cuper, Ben Lulich, and Ricardo Morales. He has conducted numerous world and American premieres. Neely has led concerts abroad with the Bochumer Symphoniker, Dortmunder Philharmoniker, and the Symphonieorchester Vorarlberg, and has performed in numerous European opera houses, including Bonn, Dortmund, Halle, and St. Gallen, as well as at the Eutiner Festspiele. For nine years, he headed orchestral activities at the University of Kansas, where he brought distinction and visibility to the orchestra and program. In 2016, the Kansas Federation of Music Clubs named Neely Kansas Artist-Educator of the Year. He was previously music director of the Butler Opera Center at the University of Texas at Austin, as well as its interim director of orchestral activities. Neely is visiting associate professor in orchestral conducting at the Jacobs School of Music.

Les Dickert designs for a diverse range of live performance, spanning contemporary and Shakespearean theater, modern dance, classical ballet, and international performance art. Previous collaborations with Nicole Haskins include Requiem at Richmond Ballet. Other recent projects include The Concert (Royal Ballet, Covent Garden), The Nutcracker (Boston Ballet), Brahms/Handel (Miami City Ballet), Minimalismand Me (Twyla Tharp), and Uncle Romeo Vanya Juliet (Bedlam/Off-Broadway). His Broadway credits include Wrong Mountain (assistant) and High Society (assistant), while Off-Broadway credits include Bedlam, Atlantic Theater, Rattlestick Theater, P73, Theater Row, Ensemble Studio Theater, InViolet Rep, and more. Regionally, Dickert has worked with Shakespeare and Company, Great Lakes Theater Festival, Geva Theater, Perseverance Theater, Syracuse Stage, Triad Stage, Arden Theater, and others. Credits for dance include White Oak Dance Project, San Francisco Ballet, Boston Ballet, Miami City Ballet, Tulsa Ballet, and Joffrey Ballet, and his international credits include Centre Pompidou, La Scala, Staatsballet Berlin, Bayerische Staatsballet, and the national ballets of England, Denmark, Australia, Belgium, Canada, and Russia. Dickert’s upcoming projects include the National Ballet of Finland. He has lectured at Yale, Cornell, and New York universities, Connecticut College, and the Beijing Dance Academy. Awards and nominations include Henry Hewes, Mahindra, Ovation, and Stanley McCandless. He was recently featured in Forbes magazine and is a graduate of the Yale School of Drama.

Jason Orlenko returns to Indiana University to head the Costume Design M.F.A. program after earning an M.F.A. from the program in 2012 under the guidance of Linda Pisano. This is his debut with IU Jacobs School of Music Opera and Ballet Theater. For IU Theatre, Drama, and Contemporary Dance, he has designed contemporary dance pieces for Making Spaces as well as The Goat, or Who is Sylvia, The Heiress, In The Next Room (or The Vibrator Play), A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Angels In America, Rent, and Take Me Out. Formerly based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Orlenko’s costumes have graced the stages of the Milwaukee Rep (The All Night Strut, Souvenir, Lady Day, Forever Plaid), Skylight Music Theatre (Annie, Sweeney Todd, and the world premiere opera The Snow Dragon), Renaissance Theaterworks (Photograph 51, The Violet Hour), Milwaukee Chamber Theatre (Great Expectations, Fallen Angels), Next Act Theatre (Silent Sky), In Tandem Theatre (The Glass Menagerie), Milwaukee Opera Theatre (The Story Of My Life), First Stage Children’s Theatre, University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, and Marquette University. Additionally, he has designed for the Rep of St. Louis, Indiana University Summer Theatre, IU Premiere Musicals, Children’s Theatre of Madison, University of Alaska-Anchorage, and Juniata College. Other professional credits include four summers at American Players Theatre, Florentine Opera, and Illinois Shakespeare Festival.

Robert La Fosse was invited by Jerome Robbins to join New York City Ballet (NYCB) in 1986 as a principal dancer after a nine-year career with American Ballet Theatre, where he danced leading roles in many of the full-length classics. During his career with NYCB, La Fosse originated the role of Tony in Jerome Robbins’ West Side Story Suite. For the Broadway stage, La Fosse starred in Bob Fosse’s Dancin’ and Jerome Robbins’ Broadway, for which he received a 1989 Tony Award nomination for Best Actor in a Musical. In addition to his performing career, La Fosse is also an established choreographer who has created over 75 works for ballet, opera, musical theater, film, and television.

Kyra Nichols is professor of ballet at the IU Jacobs School of Music, where she holds the Violette Verdy and Kathy Ziliak Anderson Chair in Ballet. Nichols began her early training with her mother, Sally Streets, a former member of New York City Ballet (NYCB). Nichols became an apprentice and then a member of the corps de ballet at NYCB in 1974 and was promoted to soloist in 1978. In 1979, George Balanchine promoted her to principal dancer, and she worked closely with both Balanchine and Jerome Robbins. She performed numerous leading roles in the NYCB repertoire, including Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto Number 2, Stars and Stripes, Liebeslieder Walzer, and Davidsbündlertänze. She has worked with an extensive list of choreographers, including William Forsythe, Susan Stroman, Christopher Wheeldon, Jacques D’Amboise, Robert La Fosse, and Robert Garland. She retired from New York City Ballet in June 2007, after 33 years with the company, as the longest-serving principal dancer in the company’s history. Immediately prior to joining the Jacobs School, she was ballet mistress at Pennsylvania Ballet.

Deborah Wingert is currently head faculty at Manhattan Youth Ballet as well as on faculty at Juilliard. She teaches company class for New York City Ballet, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and Dance Theater of Harlem. As a former dancer with New York City Ballet for 13 years, she is now one of a small group of artists selected by The George Balanchine Trust to set his choreography and has traveled throughout the United States and Europe setting and staging the Balanchine repertoire. Wingert has staged The Four Temperaments, La Source, Serenade, and Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux, to name a few. She has been a guest teacher for Harvard University, Princeton University, Indiana University, NCSA, University of California–Santa Barbara, Interlochen, and Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, her nationally acclaimed alma mater.

Cameron Grant has been a pianist at New York City Ballet for 34 years. He has performed a vast repertoire for solo piano as well as works for solo piano and orchestra, including the Bach Goldberg Variations, Pictures at an Exhibition, Rhapsody in Blue, Dances at a Gathering, etc. The numerous concerti he has presented include works by Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Hindemith, Dohnanyi, Prokofiev, Bartok, MacMillan, and Ravel. He has toured with the company across the globe in theaters in St. Petersburg, Russia, Athens, Rome, Edinburgh, Paris, Rome, Taipei, Seoul, and London, and has appeared in festivals at Vail, Grand Teton, and Nantucket. A renowned collaborative pianist, Grant has worked and/or recorded with Joel Krosnick, Ronald Thomas, Hiroko Yakima, the Leonardo Trio with Erica Kiesewetter and Jonathan Spitz, and Zina Schiff, among others. He spent five years touring with James Winn as half of the Grant-Winn piano duo, a group that took top honors at the Munich Competition. Grant was also a member of the New York New Music Ensemble. In 2004, he won an Emmy Award as a soloist in the Live from Lincoln Center broadcast “Balanchine at 100” and was invited to perform at the Kennedy Center Honors with three other members of New York City Ballet for President Bush.

A native of Korea, Sung-Mi Im began her piano studies with her mother at the age of three. After making a successful debut with Daegu Symphony Orchestra at age eight, she pursued undergraduate studies at Seoul National University, and her master’s degree in performance under the Dean’s Scholarship at Boston University. She has won numerous competitions including the Dong-A Newspaper Competition, Ye-Um Chamber Music Competition in Korea, and the Kahn Award in Boston. Im has won accolades from audiences and critics alike for performances at international festivals, including the Kusatsu Music Festival, Moon Beach Festival (Japan), Seattle Chamber Music Festival, Sitka Music Festival (Alaska), Bargemusic (New York), Chamber Music International (Dallas), Tucson Chamber Music Festival, Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival (Finland), and the Great Mountains Music Festival (Korea), among others. The Tucson Citizen declared, “Her touch, phrasing, and sense of balance were magic,” and the Anchorage Daily News called her performance “stunning.” Im has given solo and chamber music recitals in London, Montreal, Dallas, Seoul, and New York; these, along with appearances with orchestras in Korea, the Bloomington Symphony Orchestra (Indiana), and the Jupiter Symphony (New York City), were met with great acclaim. Im has been an active member of the Bloomington music community since 1999. In addition to her wide range of solo and chamber performances, she joined her late husband, violinist Ik-Hwan Bae, in the premiere of P. Q. Phan’s Duo Concertante for Violin and Piano with the IU Jacobs School of Music’s Chamber Orchestra and New Music Ensemble. She collaborated with the IU Ballet Department on Stravinsky’s Capriccio for Piano and Orchestra. Im taught piano at Yonsei University in Seoul, Korea, and is currently on the faculty of the Department of Chamber and Collaborative Music at the Jacobs School.

Christian Claessens is lecturer in ballet at the IU Jacobs School of Music. He began his ballet training at the Conservatoire de la Monaie. In 1978, he came to New York on scholarship to the School of American Ballet and the American Ballet Theatre School. After graduating, he performed with the Kansas City Ballet and Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre. In 1984, he returned to Europe as a member of the Dutch National Ballet. As a soloist, Claessens toured internationally with Stars of the American Ballet, Stars of the New York City Ballet, Stars of the Hong Kong Ballet, and Kozlov and Friends. In 1991, he cofounded the Scarsdale Ballet Studio with Diana White. In 1999, he codirected the International Ballet Project with Valentina Kozlova and White, both of New York City Ballet. In 1998, he took over the directorship of the Purchase Youth Ballet. He was the director of La Leçon: Christian Claessens School of Ballet in Westchester, New York.

Sasha Janes is an associate professor of ballet at the IU Jacobs School of Music. He has danced professionally with West Australian Ballet, Australian Ballet, Hong Kong Ballet, and Dayton Ballet, performing principal roles in works by Jiri Kylian, George Balanchine, Nacho Duato, Jean Pierre Bonnefoux, Marius Petipa, Septime Webre, Anthony Tudor, Dwight Rhoden, Alonzo King, Twyla Tharp, Alvin Ailey, and many others. He has served as both associate artistic director and resident choreographer of Charlotte Ballet. His choreographed works include Carmen, Dangerous Liaisons, We Danced Through Life, Last Lost Chance, Shelter, At First Sight, Loss, The Four Seasons, The Red Dress, Utopia, Playground Teasers, The Seed and the Soil, Chaconne, Queen, Sketches from Grace, and Rhapsodic Dances, which was performed as part of the Kennedy Center’s Ballet Across America series in June 2013. The Washington Post called Janes “a choreographer to watch.” He was a participant in New York City Ballet’s Choreographic Institute and has been a guest choreographer for Richmond Ballet’s New Works Festival.

Michael Vernon is chair emeritus of the Ballet Department and professor of ballet at the IU Jacobs School of Music. He studied at the Royal Ballet School in London with Dame Ninette de Valois and Leonide Massine. He performed with The Royal Ballet, The Royal Opera Ballet, and the London Festival Ballet before moving to New York in 1976 to join the Eglevsky Ballet as ballet  master  and  resident  choreographer  under  the  directorship  of Edward Villella. Vernon served as artistic director of the company from 1989 to 1996. He has choreographed for the Eglevsky Ballet, BalletMet, and North Carolina Dance Theatre, and Mikhail Baryshnikov commissioned him to choreograph the pas de deux In a Country Garden for American Ballet Theatre. Vernon has taught at Steps on Broadway (New York City) since 1980, been involved with the ballet program of the Chautauqua Institution since 1996, and been a company teacher for American Ballet Theatre, Dance Theatre of Harlem, Metropolitan Opera Ballet, and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

Sarah Wroth is chair of the Ballet Department and associate professor of ballet at the IU Jacobs School of Music. She began her training at the Frederick School of Classical Ballet in Frederick, Maryland. In 2003, she earned a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance with an Outside Field in Education from the Jacobs School of Music. That same year, she joined Boston Ballet as a member of the corps de ballet. With the company, Wroth performed principal roles in works by William Forsythe, Jiri Kylian, Marius Petipa, Jerome Robbins, Helen Pickett, and Mikko Nissinen, and soloist roles in ballets by Sir Frederick Ashton, George Balanchine, and August Bournonville. She has performed with Boston Ballet internationally in Spain, England, South Korea, and Finland, and, in 2009, she was awarded the E. Virginia Williams Inspiration Award for her unwavering dedication to ballet and the Boston Ballet Company. Wroth earned a Master of Science in Nonprofit Management from Northeastern University in 2015 and retired from Boston Ballet in May 2017.

Marissa Arnold is a junior from Carmel, Indiana, pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance with an Outside Field in Event Management. Before the Jacobs School of Music, she trained with the Indiana Ballet Conservatory in Carmel and attended the Margaret Barbieri Conservatory of the Sarasota Ballet. At IU, Arnold has performed in Sasha Janes’ Sadude and Playground Teasers, Michael Vernon’s The Nutcracker, Giselle as staged by Eve Lawson, George Balanchine’s La Source, Mark Morris’s Sandpaper Ballet, Christopher Wheeldon’s Carousel (A Dance), and Jerome Robbins’ Antique Epigraphs.

Mason Bassett is a sophomore at Indiana University from Bryan, Ohio. He started dancing at Bryan Community School of Dance under the direction of Kimberly Shaffer, taking ballet, jazz, tap, and modern. He later trained with Nigel Burgoine at the Ballet Theatre of Toledo. For his senior year of high school, Bassett attended Interlochen Arts Academy, studying with Joseph Morrissey. He has attended summer intensives at Interlochen Arts Camp (2014), Pennsylvania Ballet (2015), and the Nutmeg Ballet Conservatory (2016). At the Jacobs School, Bassett is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance with an Outside Field in Arts Management. With IU Jacobs School of Music Ballet Theater, he has performed in Sasha Janes’ You and I and Lascia la Spina, Cogli la Rosa, Jerome Robbins’ N.Y. Export: Opus Jazz, Mark Morris’s Sandpaper Ballet, Michael Vernon’s The Nutcracker, and Martha Graham’s Diversion of Angels.

Reece Conrad was born in Berkeley, California, and has lived in and around Berkeley his whole life. He is currently a junior pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance with an Outside Field in Physics. He has performed roles in Michael Vernon’s The Nutcracker, Jerome Robbins’ Fanfare, Martha Graham’s Diversion of Angels, Christopher Wheeldon’s Carousel, and Twyla Tharp’s Deuce Coupe. In addition to performing with IUBT, he also performs with the Jacobs School of Music’s All-Campus Jazz Ensemble.

Anderson Da Silva is a 19-year-old sophomore from Tampa, Florida, where he received his ballet training at America’s Ballet School under directors Paula Nuñez and Osmany Montano. Da Silva has performed leading roles in The Nutcracker, Le Corsaire, Don Quixote, Coppelia, and Diana and Acteon. At Indiana University, he has performed leading roles in Sasha Janes’ Sketches from Grace, Jerome Robbins’ N.Y. Export: Opus Jazz, George Balanchine’s La Source, Martha Graham’s Diversion of Angels, and Michael Vernon’s The Nutcracker.

Lexi Eicher was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana. She began dancing at age four in a church dance ministry and began pre-professional ballet training during the sixth grade, at the New American Youth Ballet under the instruction of Beth McLeish. Eicher has participated in master classes with renowned teachers from New York City Ballet, Boston Ballet,  and  Pacific  Northwest  Ballet.  She  spent  seven  weeks  at the Chautauqua Summer Intensive, where she worked closely with Patricia McBride and performed in George Balanchine’s Rubies with the Charlotte Ballet. She has also performed repertoire choreographed by Michael Vernon, Mark Diamond, Eddy Ocampo, Jimmy Orrante, Melinda Howe, and many others. Currently a sophomore, she has performed in Sasha Janes’ Sketches from Grace, Jerome Robbins’ N.Y. Export: Opus Jazz, Martha Graham’s Diversion of Angels, Christopher Wheeldon’s Carousel, and Michael Vernon’s The Nutcracker. Eicher teaches and assists in the Jacobs Pre-College Ballet Program and is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance with an Outside Field in Psychology.

Sam Epstein is from Saratoga Springs, New York, where he trained at the National Museum of Dance School of the Arts. He began his formal training at the New York State Summer School of the Arts School of Ballet under the direction of Daniel Ulbricht. During summers, he also studied at Ballet Academy East, Boston Ballet School, American Ballet Theatre, and the Chautauqua Institution with Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux and Patricia McBride. Epstein is currently a sophomore pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance with an Outside Field in Choreography. He is a recipient of the Premier Young Artist Award and a member of the Hutton Honors College and Wells Scholars Program. Recent repertoire includes George Balanchine’s Serenade (Waltz Boy), Valse- Fantaisie (Male Principal), and Western Symphony (Nashville Ballet); Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux’s Three Overtures (Male Soloist); Mark Diamond’s In the Interim; Sasha Janes’ Ecstatic Orange, The Four Seasons (Charlotte Ballet), West Side Story (IU Jacobs School of Music Opera Theater), and Wildflower; Mark Morris’s Sandpaper Ballet (Jazz Legato); Twyla Tharp’s The One Hundreds (Quintet); Michael Vernon’s The Nutcracker (Flowers and Sugar Plum Cavalier); and Christopher Wheeldon’s Carousel: A Dance (Demi-soloist). In spring 2018, he won the first-place JoAnn Athens Memorial Award in the Bloomington Chapter of the National Society of Arts and Letters Ballet Competition. Epstein’s choreographic works have been performed at IU’s Studio Theatre, Bloomington’s Buskirk-Chumley Theater, and the Chautauqua Amphitheater (where his choreography for 10 dancers to Steve Reich’s Clapping Music won second place in the 2018 Choreographic Workshop).

Jack Grohmann is a freshman from Louisville, Kentucky. Beginning dance at age 8 and ballet at age 14, he trained in ballet and contemporary at local studios in Louisville as well as at the Youth Performing Arts School. Afterward, he trained as a pre-professional student at the Boston Ballet School under Peter Stark and Margaret Tracey. His performances in Boston include the school’s choreographic festival as well as the student showing, Next Generation. He has attended the Next Generation Summer Intensive under Philip Neal, Boston Ballet Summer Dance Program, and Miami City Ballet Summer Intensive under Aranxta Ochoa, Francis Veyette, and Alexander Iziliaev. His recent performances at Indiana University include roles in Twyla Tharp’s Deuce Coupe and Michael Vernon’s The Nutcracker.

Camille Kellems is a senior pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance with an Outside Field in Arts Management. She was born and raised in Newport Beach, California, and began dancing at age three at Classical Dance Center. Her pre-professional ballet training began at Ballet Pacific, which transitioned to the Maple Conservatory under direction of Charles Maple. She has attended summer intensives with San Francisco Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, School of American Ballet, and Boston Ballet. With IUBT, she has performed in Giselle, George Balanchine’s Serenade, Divertimento No. 15, La Source, and Valse-Fantaisie, Jerome Robbins’ Fanfare and Antique Epigraphs, Twyla Tharp’s As Time Goes By, Martha Graham’s Diversion of Angels, and Michael Vernon’s The Nutcracker.

Jared Kelly, from Suitland, Maryland, is a senior at the Jacobs School of Music pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance with an Outside Field in Marketing. He began formal ballet training at age nine with Dance Theatre of Harlem’s pre-professional residency program at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., under the leadership of founder Arthur Mitchell. Shortly afterward, Kelly began more intensive training at The Washington School of Ballet (TWSB) with Kee Juan Han and Katrina Toews. With TWSB, he performed at the White House for former President and First Lady Obama. After middle school, Kelly trained under the direction of Norma Pera along with the dance faculty at the Baltimore School for the Arts (BSA). At BSA, he performed numerous lead roles, such as The Preacher in Appalachian Spring by Martha Graham and The Prince in Barry Hughson’s The Nutcracker, as well as on the Lyric Opera House stage in Baltimore, Maryland. While attending the Baltimore School for the Arts, he became a founding  member  of  Vision  Contemporary  Dance  Ensemble,  performing  modern, African, and contemporary pieces under the artistic direction of Katherine Smith. In the past three years at Jacobs, Kelly has danced masterworks by choreographers such as George Balanchine, Twyla Tharp, and Mark Morris. Most recently, he performed the Flower Festival in Genzano pas de deux by August Bournonville, Diversion of Angels by Martha Graham, and N.Y. Export: Opus Jazz by Jerome Robbins.

Mark Lambert is a junior at the Jacobs School of Music pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance with an Outside Field in Arts Administration. He began studying ballet at age 14 at Interlochen Arts Academy in Interlochen, Michigan, under Cameron Basden and Joseph Morrissey. There, he performed principal roles in The Nutcracker, La Bayadère, and Peter and the Wolf, and numerous roles in Coppélia, The Sleeping Beauty, and New Works pieces. With IU Jacobs School of Music Ballet Theater, he has performed in Michael Vernon’s The Nutcracker as Snow Cavalier, Arabian, and Flowers, George Balanchine’s Divertimento No. 15, Sasha Janes’ Saudade and Sketches from Grace, Twyla Tharp’s As Time Goes By, and Jerome Robbins’ Fanfare and N.Y. Export: Opus Jazz. Lambert was also a featured dancer in IU Jacobs School of Music Opera Theater’s West Side Story, choreographed by Sasha Janes.

From Cedarburg, Wisconsin, Lilly Leech is a sophomore pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance and exploring possible outside fields. She began dance when she was 11 at Milwaukee Ballet School and Academy. She received training there from Nadia Thompson and Rolando Yanes until age 16. During her senior year of high school, she was in the Professional Division at Ballet Chicago under Daniel Duell. Leech has spent summers training at Milwaukee Ballet, Boston Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and Indiana University. This season with IUBT, Leech performed in Jerome Robbins’ Antique Epigraphs and Michael Vernon’s The Nutcracker.

Robert Mack is a junior from Irvine, California, pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance with an Outside Field in History. He trained under the tutelage of Diane Lauridsen at Lauridsen Ballet Centre and South Bay Ballet, where he danced the Nutcracker Prince in The Nutcracker, the Prince in Cinderella, the Pas de Deux in David Lichine’s Graduation Ball, and Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, as well as featured roles in ballets by Robert Kelly, Tiffany Billings, Eva Stone, and Charles Maple. Mack twice choreographed for South Bay Ballet’s annual Benefactor’s Concert, received the regional Petit Oasis Foundation Scholarship, and, in 2016, was the recipient of the Daily Breeze Making a Difference Award for his contribution to the southern California arts community. He is a two-time full scholarship recipient to American Ballet Theatre’s summer intensive and also attended summer programs at Utah Metropolitan Ballet and Princess Grace Academie de Danse in Monaco. At the Jacobs School of Music, he is the recipient of the Premier Young Artist Award and Music Faculty Award, and has performed with IUBT as well as in Opera Theater’s production of Don Giovanni.

Sterling Manka is a senior from Fishers, Indiana, pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance. He began dancing at age eight at Butler University’s Jordan Academy of Dance and graduated from Indiana Ballet Conservatory, where he trained with Sergey Sergiev. He placed in the top 12 in the Ensembles category at the Youth America Grand Prix finals in New York  City for his performance in Sergey Sergiev’s Amélie. Manka attended the 2015 Bolshoi Ballet Academy Summer Intensive in New York City, where he won a scholarship to spend a month training at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy in Moscow, Russia, and an invitation to train at the academy year round. While at IU, he has performed in George Balanchine’s Divertimento No. 15, Valse- Fantaisie, and The Steadfast Tin Soldier, Twyla Tharp’s As Time Goes By and Deuce Coupe, Mark Morris’s Sandpaper Ballet, Jerome Robbins’ Fanfare, and Opera Theater’s Oklahoma! Manka is a member of the Hutton Honors College.

Victoria Manning is a graduating junior pursing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance with an Outside field in Marketing. Born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts, she began her training with Jose Mateo Ballet Theatre at age three. At age 14, she joined Mateo’s pre-professional company, Youthworks, where she performed featured roles in original choreographic pieces. Before her time at Indiana University, she performed with the corps de ballet of the professional company her junior and senior year of high school, in Mateo’s The Nutcracker as well as other original works. She has attended summer programs at Jose Mateo Ballet Theatre, Brookline Ballet, Boston Ballet, Washington Ballet, Ballet Austin, Pennsylvania Ballet, and Orlando Ballet. Since joining IUBT, she has performed in Michael Vernon’s The Nutcracker, Giselle, Jerome Robbins’ Antique Epigraphs, Mark Morris’s Sandpaper Ballet, and George Balanchine’s Valse- Fantaisie. Manning is a recipient of the Premier Young Artist Award from the Jacobs School of Music and is on the faculty of its Pre-College Ballet Program.

Kyra Muttilainen, a junior from Richmond, Vermont, is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance. She began her training at Vermont Ballet Theater under the direction of Alex and Kirsten Nagiba. She has attended summer intensives with the Bolshoi Ballet, Houston Ballet, Ellison Ballet, and Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre. Most recently, she attended the Jacob’s Pillow ballet program, where she worked with Anna-Marie Holmes and performed in Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s Scarlet Circles. She also attended the Chautauqua Institution under the direction of Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux and Patricia McBride, where she performed the Waltz Girl in George Balanchine’s Serenade, Sasha Janes’ Ecstatic Orange, and Mark Diamond’s In the Interim, as well as performing with Charlotte Ballet in Sasha Janes’ Four Seasons and with Nashville Ballet in George Balanchine’s Western Symphony. In her time with IU Jacobs School of Music Ballet Theater, she has performed in Jerome Robbins’ Fanfare, George Balanchine’s Valse-Fantaisie and La Source, Sasha Janes’ Wildflower, Giselle, and Michael Vernon’s The Nutcracker. Muttilainen is a recipient of the Jacobs School’s Premier Young Artist Award.

Keith Newman, from Washington, D.C., danced with the Washington School of Ballet for 11 years and also taught there as part-time faculty as well as being the children’s ballet master for Septime Webre’s The Nutcracker. Newman started dancing at the age of six and has trained under the guidance of Kee Juan Han, Xiomara Reyes, Kristina Windom, Rinat Imaev, Mimmo Miccolis, and many others. He has participated in many of Septime Webre’s ballets and world premieres, such as The Nutcracker, Peter Pan, Alice (in wonderland), and The Great Gatsby. Newman competed at the 2016 Pittsburgh Youth American Grand Prix semi-finals and received top six for Men’s Classical Variations. With the Washington School of Ballet, he has performed in many pieces, both classical and contemporary, including Napoli Divertissements as the principal male for the “Flower Festival” pas de deux. With IUBT, he has performed in Michael Vernon’s Shards and The Nutcracker.

Claudia Rhett is from Nashville, Tennessee, and trained at Harding Academy School of Dance, where she studied several styles of dance and, in 2008, began assistant teaching. She has attended summer intensives at the School of American Ballet as well as on scholarship at Pacific Northwest Ballet and the Chautauqua Institution. As an apprentice at Chautauqua, she danced with Nashville Ballet in George Balanchine’s Western Symphony. She also performed the role of the Dark Angel in Balanchine’s Serenade. As a member of the Hutton Honors College and a recipient of a Jacobs School of Music scholarship, Rhett is a junior pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance with an Outside Field in Business. While at IU, she has performed in Michael Vernon’s The Nutcracker, Giselle as staged by Eve Lawson, Jerome Robbins’ Fanfare, George Balanchine’s Valse- Fantaisie, Sasha Janes’ Sketches from Grace and Wildflower, Mark Morris’s Sandpaper Ballet, the role of the Red Girl in Martha Graham’s Diversion of Angels, and the role of Star in Twyla Tharp’s Deuce Coupe. She is also a teacher for the IU Pre-College Ballet Program.

Andrew Rossi was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He began his formal dance training at age 14 with the Ballet Academy of Pittsburgh and the Dance Conservatory of Pittsburgh. His summers were spent dancing at the Point Park University Summer Dance Intensive, Chautauqua Institution, and Pacific Northwest Ballet. He is a sophomore pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance with an Outside

Field in Arts Management and the recipient of Jacobs’ Premier Young Artist Award. Recently, he has performed in Twyla Tharp’s Deuce Coupe; George Balanchine’s Valse- Fantaisie, Western Symphony (Nashville Ballet), and Serenade; Christopher Wheeldon’s Carousel: A Dance; Michael Vernon’s The Nutcracker and The Three Facets; Christian Claessens’ La Boutique Fantasque; Mark Morris’s Sandpaper Ballet; Sally Streets’ Chopin Pas de Deux; Paulo Arrais’s The Dance Experience; Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux’s Three Overtures; Mark Diamond’s In the Interim; and Sasha Janes’ Playground Teasers, Ecstatic Orange, and The Four Seasons (Charlotte Ballet). In summer 2018, Rossi attended the Chautauqua Institution as an apprentice dancer under the direction of Patricia McBride and Jean- Pierre Bonnefoux. He has choreographed for the outreach initiative Occupy People’s Park, University Player’s Slip, and Chautauqua Institution’s Choreographic Workshop.

Brandon Silverman started dancing at age five and immediately fell in love with ballet. He studied at the pre-professional level under Marcia Dale Weary for three years. While at Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, he performed in Lazlo Berdo’s Carnival of the Animals and George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker, and originated one of the demi-soloist roles in Alan Hineline’s Brio. In 2016, he joined Pennsylvania Regional Ballet, where he performed in its production of The Nutcracker as the Harlequin, Snow King, and Arabian Prince. During the 2017-18 season, Silverman was a finalist in the Kennedy Center Master Series Program and received a full scholarship to Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s 2019 Summer Intensive from the 2018 Regional Dance America Northeast Festival. He is a freshman double majoring in ballet performance and finance.

Anna Lisa Wilkins was born and raised in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts. She is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance with an Outside Field in Italian, as well as a Bachelor of Science in Finance. She hopes to dance with a professional ballet company after graduation. At the Jacobs School of Music, she has been involved with many of the opera and ballet performances, either as a dancer in the ballets or working for the Costume Department for the operas. Her repertoire at IU includes Concerto Barocco, The Nutcracker, Divertimento No. 15, Fanfare, Flower Festival in Genzano, Sandpaper Ballet, Deuce Coupe, and N.Y. Export: Opus Jazz. She has been involved with the IU Pre-College Ballet Program, both in teaching and choreographic roles. This year, Wilkins also became involved with community outreach through the Ballet Department, helping to establish the Bloomington Ballet Ensemble to share further performance opportunities with the Bloomington community.

Sarah Young was born in Bloomington, Indiana, where she began her ballet training in the Pre-College Ballet Program at the Jacobs School of Music. By the time she was in high school, she had attended summer intensives at the School of American Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and Houston Ballet. She continued her training under Peter Boal in the Professional Division Program at Pacific Northwest Ballet, where she danced alongside the professional company in numerous roles, including in George Balanchine’s Diamonds, Alexi Ratmansky’s Don Quixote, and Kent Stowell’s The Nutcracker. A senior, Young is a double major pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Ballet Performance at Jacobs and a Bachelor of Science in Marketing at the Kelley School of Business. She remains an active participant in Jacobs, Kelley, and the Hutton Honors College.