Dance Talks is a new FREE series presented by Philadelphia Ballet’s Community Education and Public Programs to bring audiences behind the scenes of this season’s productions.
This special Dance Talk explores the lasting legacy of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker® through an excerpt performed by Sydney Dolan, The NANA Fund Principal Dancer and Pau Pujol, Principal Dancer, followed by a panel discussion including behind-the-scenes perspectives and personal stories from Philadelphia Ballet artists and experts. The discussion will celebrate the ballet’s history, enduring appeal, and the generations of families who continue to make it part of their lives.
Philadelphia Ballet’s Dance Talks are generously supported by Allen R. and Judy Brick Freedman.
Panelists
Elizabeth McPherson
Professor
Elizabeth McPherson is a Professor, Dance Program Head, and MFA Dance coordinator at Montclair State University. A recipient of the National Dance Education Organization’s Outstanding Dance Educator Researcher award in 2023, she is the author of The Contributions of Martha Hill to American Dance and Dance Education, co-author of Broadway, Balanchine and Beyond: A Memoir, and editor/compiler of The Bennington School of the Dance: A History in Writings and Interviews.
Paul Hewitt
Head Carpenter
Paul Hewitt has spent nearly 35 years behind the scenes at the Philadelphia Ballet (formerly the Pennsylvania Ballet). The son of former Philadelphia Orchestra oboist Stevens Hewitt, Paul grew up with strong musical foundations, studying both the violin and viola.
He began his career with the company in December 1991 as a Production Assistant and Assistant Stage Manager. Over the years, he transitioned deeply into technical staging operations, serving as the
A proud member of IATSE Local 8 (Philadelphia’s Stagehands Union), Hewitt is an expert in managing stage environments and has worked in every major theater, stadium, and arena across the Philadelphia region.
Beyond day-to-day staging, he famously put his classical music training to use when coordinating the mechanical systems for the ballet’s massive $100,000 “Nutcracker” Christmas tree makeover in 2019, timing the tree’s intricate expansions to specific counts in the orchestra’s score.
Charity Eagens
Children’s Ballet Stager
Charity Eagens began her dance training at age seven with the Valley Forge School of Dance under the direction of Sharon Atkinson and later under full scholarship with Bo and Stephanie Spassoff at the Rock School of Dance. She also spent summers training at the Rock School and Hartford Ballet. In addition, Ms. Eagens trained under the guidance of Wilhelm Burmann, Gloria Govern, Olga Kostrizsky, Natalia Nikulin Barr, Yvonne Patterson, Nina Fedorva, Roy Kaiser, and Sandra Jennings, among many others.
Ms. Eagens retired from Philadelphia Ballet, formerly Pennsylvania Ballet, in 2005 to start a family, and has since begun a teaching career. She has taught for numerous schools in the Greater Philadelphia area, including Muhlenberg College (Allentown, PA), Delaware Valley Dance Academy (Colmar, PA), Lionville School of Dance (Exton, PA), and the Radomile Academy of Dance (Havertown, PA), among others. In the fall of 2015, Ms. Eagens attended a teacher’s workshop at the Peabody Institute in Baltimore, where she observed classes led by Marcia Dale Weary of Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet.
Ms. Eagens has appeared as Queen in Philadelphia Ballet’s Sleeping Beauty, as well as Angel Corella’s, Swan Lake, and the role of Step Mother in PBII’s Prince Charming. She currently resides in Worcester, PA and is the proud mother of three daughters.
Sydney Dolan
The NANA Fund Principal Dancer
Sydney Dolan started her ballet training at age three in North Carolina. She has been a finalist in the World Ballet Competition (2012 to 2016) as well as the Youth America Grand Prix (2014 to 2016). In 2016, Sydney also received bronze medals from the World Ballet Competition as well as the Youth America Grand Prix – Tampa, where she performed Le Corsaire’s Medora and the Diana and Acteon variation as a part of the Stars of Today Meet the Stars of Tomorrow: YAGP Gala.
Sydney joined Philadelphia Ballet as a member of Philadelphia Ballet II in 2016, joined the Company as an apprentice in 2017, was promoted to the corps de ballet for the 2018/2019 Season, and was promoted to soloist during the 2019/2020 Season. In 2018, Sydney received a prestigious ballet fellowship from the Princess Grace Foundation – USA, which supported her salary for the season and will support her future artistic endeavors.
She has performed featured roles in Angel Corella’s Swan Lake (Pas de Trois), The Sleeping Beauty (Lilac Fairy), Don Quixote (Mercedes, Queen of Dryads, Flower Girl), and La Bayadère (Gamzatti, Shades Pas de Trois); George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker® (Dew Drop, The Sugarplum Fairy); and Rubies (Tall Girl).
Prior to Philadelphia Ballet, Sydney performed nationally and internationally in ballets that include Victor Gsovsky’s Grand Pas Classique in Sarasota and the lead role in Paquita in Japan. Most recently she performed the La Esmeralda variation for the 10th Anniversary World Ballet Competition Professional Gala in Orlando, FL.
Pau Pujol
Principal Dancer
Pau Pujol began his training at Esclat Dance School before attending Corella Dance Academy in Barcelona under the direction of Carmen Corella (a former dancer at Philadelphia Ballet), and Dayron Vera. He attended summer intensives with English National Ballet, Ibstage, Royal Ballet, and American Ballet Theatre. Pau joined Philadelphia Ballet as an Apprentice for the 2018/19 Season and was promoted to Corps for the 2019/20 Season. He was promoted to Demi Soloist and later to Soloist during the 2022/23 Season. He is currently First Soloist following his promotion during the 2024/25 Season.