Our digital season concludes with a series of world premieres celebrating the beauty of dance and the music of Jennifer Higdon. Streaming May 27–June 2.

DANCE CARD

“In the game of ballroom etiquette, a ‘Dance Card’ was used to record the names of successive partners. It was a carefully orchestrated affair, much like Jennifer Higdon’s colourful score. Dressed in white tie attire, the ballet recalls the jubilance of a formal gala. As the performers fleet between partners, we are in effect dancing with our audience. I hope our patrons fill their dance card with that shared experience. May we have this next dance?” – Russell Ducker, choreographer

Cast

Mayara Pineiro
Ashton Roxander
Kathryn Manger
Aleksey Babayev
Sydney Dolan
Etienne Diaz
Lucia Erickson

Pau Pujol
Jaqueline Callahan
Austin Eyler
Gabriela Mesa
Isaac Hollis
Julia Vinez
Jeremy Power

Russell Ducker

Russell Ducker began his training at the Royal Ballet Lower School, White Lodge and graduated from the Royal Ballet Upper School, Covent Garden in 2007. In 2006, he won the Pamela Self Award for dance, as well as a bursary from the NFL foundation. As a student choreographer, Russell received awards in the Dame Ninette De Valois, Sir Kenneth MacMillan, and Ursula Moreton choreographic competitions and in 2006 collaborated with  musicians from the Royal College of Music on a new work. 

SPILLWAY

Spillway is a meditation on the unsuppressable power of nature and its influence on the course of human lives–an unending journey with determinate direction and indeterminate end. Form and dynamics from nature are reflected in our natural being and the artifice, the art, that we make: the veins that carry our lifeblood follow the forms of rivers, and likewise the construction of our roads, highways, byways, and the course of our relationships through life. The form and flow of rivers is elemental, the shape of pure energy and life. Inspired by Jennifer Higdon’s study of three rivers in Tennessee, Concerto 4-3, Spillway continues the composer’s sonic journey into the course and flow of dance.” – Meredith Rainey, choreographer

Cast

1st Movement

Yuka Iseda
Jermel Johnson
Cory Ogdahl
Emily Davis
Nick Patterson
Sophie Savas-Carstens
Emily Wilson

2nd Movement

Lillian DiPiazza
Sterling Baca
Cato Berry
Adrianna de Svastich
Denis Maciel
Siobhan Howley
Erin O’Dea

3rd Movement

Lillian DiPiazza
Yuka Iseda
Sterling Baca
Jermel Johnson
Cory Ogdahl
Cato Berry
Emily Davis
Adrianna de Svastich
Denis Maciel
Siobhan Howley
Erin O’Dea
Nick Patterson
Sophie Savas-Carstens
Emily Wilson

Meredith Rainey

Meredith Rainey began dancing at 15 in his hometown of Fort Lauderdale. In 1985, he joined the Milwaukee Ballet. In 1987, he was invited to join the newly formed Pennsylvania-Milwaukee Ballet, remaining with the Philadelphia Ballet when the collaboration ended—spending the majority of the time as a soloist—until his retirement in 2006.

ENCOUNTERS

“Encounters is a reflection of my thoughts about this crazy wheel of time that is both universal and mysterious.  It is also about unexpected encounters and how we can’t anticipate how we will influence each other or whether our paths will cross again.  The people we meet have the potential to inspire us and increase the good within us. Our relationships are as mysterious to us as time itself and the possibilities are endless.

This piece was created on Zoom.  I was in one place and the dancers were all together in Philadelphia.  Despite the distance between us, the creative process was surprisingly smooth and honest, and everyone felt very free to explore new possibilities.  The constraints of Zoom offered me a new and unexpected language of movement and made me think outside my usual creative box.  The result is a very personal ballet that has been inspired by the many wonderful encounters in my life.” – Juliano Nunes, choreographer

Cast

So Jung Shin
Zecheng Liang
Nayara Lopes
Jack Thomas

Oksana Maslova
Arian Molina Soca
Dayesi Torriente
Thays Golz

Juliano Nunes

Juliano Nunes, born in 1990, trained at the Brazilian Dance Conservatory in Rio de Janeiro before furthering his studies at the Mannheim University of Music and Performing Arts and completing an apprenticeship with the Karlsruhe Ballet. His professional career began the following year, when he was hired by the company. His need for discovery took him to the Ballet Hagen in Germany, and he went on to join Gauthier Dance, also in Germany, for two years.

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