A Bay Area Dance Resource

Who's Dancing What, When, and Where Around San Francisco Bay

• Edward Stegge, dancer
• Frederick Wiseman, film director
• Robert Heindel, painter
• Jamie Bell, actor, and Stephen Daldry, film director

New and Cues

Ballet San Jose News

New Partnership with American Ballet Theatre
New Season and Artistic Appointments Announced

Ballet San Jose (BSJ) has announced that the Company will form a partnership with American Ballet Theatre (ABT) to grow its professional company and the Ballet San Jose School. Not only will BSJ have access to ABT's creative resources and advisory staff, but will also use the ABT National Training Curriculum in the Ballet San Jose School, making the School the only certified west coast institution that can provide the complete ABT Curriculum.

Executive Director of Ballet San Jose, Stephanie Ziesel, stated that, “This is an unprecedented opportunity for our professional company and students. Having access to the breadth and depth of ABT’s artistic resources, relationships, and knowledge base will have a transformative effect on our organization and our community.”

New Season Lineup

The Company's 2012 season will open on March 2nd with a repertory program consisting of the Company premiere of Paquita (Petipa), Robbins' Interplay, and Lichine's Graduation Ball. The second program, opening on April 13th, features no less than three Company premieres, Balanchine's Allegro Brillante, Splendid Isolation III by Jessica Lang, and Bruch Violin Concerto by Clark Tippet. Also on the program is a fourth work to be announced later. The season concludes with the full-length ballet Cinderella, with choreography by Ben Stevenson, on May 4th.

Artistic Director's Position

None of this season's programs include choreography by Dennis Nahat, Artistic Director of the Company since 1986 when it was partnered with Cleveland Ballet, founded by Nahat and Ian Horvath. Recent rumors and news reports are that Nahat is leaving as Artistic Director, but the Company's only official statement so far has been that, "The Board of Trustees remains in discussions with Artistic Director Dennis Nahat to define a continuing relationship that attempts to preserve his outstanding legacy, ensure his works remain in the repertory, and honor the enormous artistic contributions he has made to the organization."

Evan Saunders Passes: Dancer, Actor, Trouper

Evan Saunders, former dancer with Acrodanse Theater, Maxine Mowrman, and Lizz Roman & Dancers, died on Friday, January 20th after a long struggle with cancer. Born in Bergen, Norway in 1973, Evan was a 1995 graduate of Rutgers College. A resident of El Granada, in recent years Evan worked as a lighting technician and actor with the Coastal Repertory Theatre of Half Moon Bay. Reluctantly drafted into a bit part, he went on to appear in several lead roles.

Evan is survived by his wife Lisa, former registrar with San Francisco Ballet School, and their four-year old son Aidan. The family is establishing a scholarship fund at the Coastal Repertory Theatre in Evan's name for a promising graduating senior who has shown technical aptitude. Details will be announced.

Two days before his death, Evan was at work on the theater lighting. The dictionary defines a trouper as 1: a member of a troupe, especially actor; 2: a person who deals with and persists through difficulty or hardship without complaint. By either definition, Evan was a real trouper.

Funeral services will be held on Saturday, January 28th at 2:00 pm at Miller-Dutra Coastside Chapel in Half Moon Bay.

sjDANCE Announces 10th Annual Dance Festival

sjDANCE is now accepting applications for particpants in their 10th annual Dance Festival at Santana Row. The Festival will take place on April 22, 2012, the first Sunday of National Dance Week. The Festival will be held outdoors at Park Valencia in Santana Row. A $30 application fee is required to participate. Applicants must submit payment with the name and length of their piece, the choreographer, and time of day/scheduling preference. Scheduling requests are considered on a first-come, first-served basis to groups who meet the deadline of February 24th with a fully completed application. For more information see www.sjDANCEco.org.

New Soloist Joins San Francisco Ballet

San Francisco Ballet has accepted a new soloist, Carlos Quenedit, of Havana, Cuba. Quenedit trained with the National Ballet of Cuba, Miami City Ballet, and Ballet de Monterrey in Mexico. His previous performances have included works such as Don Quixote, Coppélia, Swan Lake, Giselle, The Nutcracker, Allegro Brillante, Symphony in C, Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux, The Four Temperaments, Concerto Barocco, Diana and Actaeon, In the Night, Liturgy, and Ballet Imperial, among others.