Richmond Ballet

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New Works Festival

September 29 - October 4, 2009
Richmond Ballet Studio Theatre

Back by popular demand, the spirit of creation lives on in Richmond Ballet’s second New Works Festival. The inaugural choreographic collection in April 2008 sold out every night of performance! Dedicated to the evolution of the art of dance, the New Works Festival will feature four original works-in-progress from four innovative choreographers. The New Works Festival promises to give audiences an opportunity to witness the innovation of dance at the very moment of inspiration.

The New Works Festival is performed in Richmond Ballet's Studio Theatre.

Purchase Tickets NOW or by Phone at 1.800.982.2787 or In Person at the Richmond Ballet Box Office Monday - Friday 11:00AM - 6:00 PM. More ticket information...

The Artists

Jacqulyn Buglisi (Artistic Director, Buglisi Dance Theatre) In her four decade long career as a choreographer, artistic director, dancer and master teacher, Buglisi has made an indelible impact on the contemporary field of dance. Renowned for highly visual, imagistic dances that use literature, history, and heroic archetypes as a primary source, Buglisi’s ballets aresweeping, passionate and rooted in a dramatic, visceral technique. Her repertoire of more than 60 works are archived at the NY Public Library and commissioned worldwide: Flamenco Festival, Madrid; Shankar Performing Arts Co., India; Shanghai Dance Ensemble, China; North Carolina Dance Theater; The Juilliard School; and Martha Graham Dance Co., where she was a Principal Dancer for 12 years and was featured on the televised Kennedy Center Honors. Buglisi is Chair, Modern Department at The Ailey School, and served on the faculties of Juilliard and Martha Graham School. Her honors include the American Dance Guild Award, NEA, and Altria’s Women Choreographer Initiative Award. Buglisi Dance Theatre marked its 15^th season in 2009 at the Joyce Theater.

Ma Cong is a principal dancer and resident choreographer at Tulsa Ballet. Previously he danced with the National Ballet of China, after graduating with honors from the Beijing Dance Academy. He was awarded the Silver Medal at the All China Dance Competition in 1994 and was a finalist at the prestigious Paris International Dance Competition in 1998. Cong has worked with choreographers and directors from Royal Ballet, Kirov Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, Boston Ballet and San Francisco Ballet; and has performed leading roles in Swan Lake, The Sleeping Beauty, Giselle, Don Quixote, Le Corsaire, and Romeo & Juliet, among others. In January 2006, Cong was named one of the “25 to Watch” by Dance Magazine for both dancing and choreography. Cong has created many works for Tulsa Ballet including a brand new Carmina Burana for Tulsa Ballet’s 50th Anniversary celebration. In 2008, he was chosen to be one of four choreographers for the National Choreographer Initiative.

James Frazier is currently the chairperson of the VCU Department of Dance and Choreography. In addition to performing with Kokuma Dance Theatre Company (Birmingham, England), Dallas Black Dance Theatre (Texas) and Edgeworks Dance Theatre (Washington, D.C.), Frazier earned an M.F.A. in Dance from Florida StateUniversity and a Doctorate in Dance Education from Temple University. He has created dance works for a number of companies across the U.S. and has had his work presented at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. In addition to teaching and choreographing at VCU, Frazier has worked with Starr Foster Dance Project, Chris Burnside and Dancers, and Ground Zero Dance. He also teaches for the School of Richmond Ballet.

Julie Job Smithson began her ballet training at the Flint Institute of Music and graduated from the North Carolina School of the Arts. She has performed with several U.S. companies, including Ballet Met, Washington Ballet, Cleveland Ballet and Minnesota Dance Theatre. She also toured with the Scottish Ballet. A School of Richmond Ballet Faculty member for ten years, Smithson has taught in Europe, Asia and the United States. She received the Presidential Citation for Outstanding Educator by the Governor’s School for Humanities and Visual Performing Arts held at the University of Richmond.

The New Works Festival is just one example of Richmond Ballet’s commitment to bringing world-class dance to the Richmond community and to the dance world at large. In commissioning new work, Richmond Ballet keeps the art form of dance alive and evolving. Patrons will experience the New Works Festival in Richmond Ballet’s intimate Studio Theater, which allows audiences to view dance up-close in a relaxed setting.