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Resident Artist performs for international reunion; Other company members take on summer challenges
7/10/2008
RICHMOND BALLET
MEDIA RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 10, 2008
Media Contact:
Aaron Sutten
(804) 344-0906 x244
asutten@richmondballet.com
Resident Artist performs for
international reunion;
Other company members take on summer
challenges
RICHMOND – In 1994, two dancers from Richmond
Ballet, Igor Antonov and Marina Antonova, achieved Olympic-style glory, earning
the bronze and silver medals, respectively, in the senior division of the USA
International Ballet Competition.
To
commemorate their work and that of the many medalists-turned-stars, IBC USA
will host the IBC Reunion Gala 2008, which will feature a diverse performance
of classical and contemporary ballet, in Jackson, Miss., on July 12. Antonov,
now the resident artist in Richmond Ballet’s professional company, and
Antonova, a former Richmond Ballet company member, will join several other
honorees in the reunion performance.
“We
are very excited to return to Jackson,” Antonov said, explaining that they were
approached by USA IBC several months ago about performing for the reunion. They will dance the same two pieces for which
they earned their medals in 1994: Pas
Glazunov, choreographed by Richmond Ballet Artistic Associate and Ballet
Master Malcolm Burn, and the grand pas de deux from The Sleeping Beauty, choreographed by Burn after Marius Petipa.
The
competition, established in 1978 and last held in 2006, takes place every four
years in Jackson and attracts young talent from around the world, offering two
weeks of competition and opportunities to study with master teachers or earn
company contracts. The United States Congress designated Jackson as the
official home of the competition in 1982.
Antonov
said he and Antonova look forward not only to the performance but also to
reuniting with the family that hosted them during the competition in 1994.
Other
members of Richmond Ballet’s professional company also have made plans to
pursue personal goals this summer before the opening of the Ballet’s 25th
Anniversary season in September.
In
June, Danaë Carter and Phillip Skaggs guest starred in Oklahoma, staged
by Agnes de Mille protégé Gemze de Lappe, at The Fox Theatre in Atlanta, Ga. Kirk Henning takes the stage with both the
Suzanne Farrell Ballet and Chautauqua Ballet during the summer break. Lauren Fagone and Valerie Tellmann will travel
to Laguna Beach, Calif., to participate in the National Choreographer’s
Initiative, a three-week workshop during which U.S. choreographers experiment
with new choreography on a select group of 16 dancers.
Other
dancers acquire new skills or expand their horizons while on holiday. Angela Hutto is studying chemistry, American
literature and history of Western civilization at J. Sargeant Reynolds
Community College, and Shira Lanyi is learning orthopedic care interning with
Dr. Kenneth Zaslav. World traveler Jesse
Bechard plans to visit Israel, and French native Cecile Tuzii is spending time
in her home country.
Whether
they’re performing, visiting home, vacationing or teaching classes, the company
members’ summers enrich their lives and those of others before the new season
begins.
###
Richmond Ballet, The State Ballet of
Virginia, is dedicated to the education, promotion, preservation and continuing
evolution of the art form of ballet.
Richmond Ballet strives to keep meaningful works of dance alive and to
produce and foster new works that remain true to these values. Now entering its 25th professional season,
Richmond Ballet's mission is to “awaken and uplift the human spirit, both for
audiences and artists.”
***
For further press information contact:
Aaron Sutten, Director of Marketing and
Communications
EMAIL: asutten@richmondballet.com; CALL:
(804) 344-0906 x244