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A Conversation with Philadelphia Ballet Black Alumni Dancers
Saturday February 12th at 4pm at the Kimmel Center Plaza Stage Click below to register or at or Text: PABAlumni to 76278 |
Moderated by
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Panel Members
Meredith Rainey
Meredith Rainey began dancing at 15 in his hometown of Fort Lauderdale. In 1985 he became the first African American dancer of the Milwaukee Ballet. In 1987, he was invited to join the newly formed Pennsylvania-Milwaukee Ballet, when the collaboration ended, he remained with the Pennsylvania Ballet for 17 years—much of that time as a soloist—until his retirement in 2006.
Among other awards and fellowships, Meredith has been the recipient of the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts Fellowship (1995 & 2002), the Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation Artist as Catalyst Grant (2001), the Independence Foundation Fellowship in the Arts (2002), a finalist for the Pew Fellowship in the Arts (2003), and a Pew Center for Arts and Heritage Grant (2010). Meredith has been commissioned to create works for Pennsylvania Ballet, Ballet X, Delaware Ballet, Hubbard Street 2, National Ballet De Cali, Danse4Nia Repertory Ensemble, and institutions such as The University of the Arts, Drexel University, Stockton University, Goucher College, Swarthmore College and Bryn Mawr College. His work has been performed in North and South America and throughout Spain. In 2009 Meredith founded and directed Carbon Dance Theatre a contemporary ballet company in Philadelphia. In 2014 after deciding to concentrate on more artistic projects Meredith closed the company and remained a sought-after teacher, mentor, and independent choreographer. In the Fall of 2019 Meredith graduated with top honors as a member of the first cohort of candidates for the Master of Fine Arts in Dance from The University of the Arts.
Ramon Flowers
Ramón began his formal dance training on scholarship at the School for the Pennsylvania Ballet, and later attended the School of American Ballet.
Four years after joining the Pennsylvania Ballet Company, as the first male African-American dancer, he moved to Europe as a principal ballet dancer for 12 Years. He spent seven years with the legendary, internationally renowned Maurice Béjart, performing in major cities in over 60 countries on every continent. He later moved to Germany to dance with William Forsythe, director of the Frankfurt Ballet, and then to Madrid to work with choreographer Nacho Duato and the Compañía Nacional de Danza de España. He has been offered company contracts with New York City Ballet, Dutch National Ballet, Basil Ballet, Lyon Opera Ballet, Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo, and Peter Schaufuss Ballet.
He returned to North America to dance with Montreal`s Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, where repertoire encompassed pieces by all the choreographers for whom he’d danced in Europe, as well as the works of George Balanchine, which were very familiar to him because of his first training as a teenage student. He then left Canada to return to his first love for dance, musical theatre and was featured in several Broadway shows, including Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake, Cats, The Lion King, The Green Bird, The Boy From Oz, and Hot Feet, as well as Broadway National Tours with Chita Rivera in The Dancer’s Life, and A Chorus Line, in the role of Richie. While living in NYC he was featured in commercials, film, and Television. Ramon teaches ballet at the American Dance Festival Summer Intensive at Duke University, Alvin Ailey II, has choreographed on the Indianapolis Ballet Company, as well as workshops on the William Forsythe style of movement in NYC during his time away from Butler University. He received his BA in French from The City College of New York, CUNY, and his MFA in Dance from The University of Iowa. Began his ballet training with Barbara Walzak (NYC) followed with training at The American Ballet Theater School (Leon Danielian) following at The School of American Ballet (G.Balanchine / L. Kirstein ) While attending the School of American Ballet he danced with Makarova and Company and apprenticed with The Boston Ballet (Violette Verdy). After his graduating from The School of American, he was offered a position with the Chicago City Ballet ( Maria Tallchief/Paul Mejia) where he danced as a Principal in many of the companies Balanchine Répertoire. He has guested with the Fort Worth Ballet where he had the opportunity to share the stage with former Dallas Cowboy Running Back Herschel Walker. After dancing with The Chicago City Ballet he joined The Pennsylvania Ballet. (Robert Weiss) After several years with The Pennsylvania Ballet, he joined La Compagnie Nomade (Serge Compardon) in Vevey Switzerland. He ended his career dancing with L’Opera de Lausanne in Switzerland. He is a former teacher and répétiteur with La Jeune Ballet de Lausanne, Switzerland, Academy de Danse Fusion, Lausanne Switzerland and Centre de Dance Martinelli, Nyon, Switzerland. In 2005 he became a Faculty member with Ballet Academy East, NYC. (D. Hoover/J. Dubno) and in 2010 joined The Conservatory of Dance, School of The Arts Faculty, at Purchase College, NY
Joseph Malbrough