Lisa Macuja-Elizalde
Encyclopedia
Lisa Teresita Pacheco Macuja-Elizalde (born on October 3, 1964) is a Prima Ballerina. She is the first Philippine ballerina, and first foreign soloist who ever joined the Kirov Ballet in 1984. In the Philippines, she is the Artistic Director of Ballet Manila and Vice-Chairman of the Philippine UNESCO National Commission. She was also the Commissioner of the National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women. Macuja-Elizalde is also Directress and faculty member of the Ballet Manila School – a training center for ballet professionals who are steeped in the Russian Vaganova method.
, Philippines. She is the daughter of Cesar Macuja and Susan Pacheco. She is the second among four siblings. Her elder brother, Julio II (Joly) was born in 1963. She had a younger brother who was a teenage actor and musical artist named Jerome who was born in 1967, but died on a fatal car accident on September 30, 1984, just three days before her 20th birthday, during her first season at the Kirov Ballet. She is the sister of Gia Macuja Atchison, actress and musical artist, who was born in 1971, and married to musician Robert Atchison. Raised as a Catholic, she attended St. Theresa's College
in Quezon City
, Philippines, where she was a consistent honor student in grade school until she graduated salutatorian
in her high school class. At age 8, she started her first ballet class with Felicitas Layag-Radaic as her mentor, who kept a vigilant eye on her early years as a ballerina, and saw her through five Royal Academy of Dancing (RAD) syllabus examinations in the ten years while she was under her school. At age 11, she danced onstage for the first time in a ballet recital called Twinkle Toes in Tinsel Land that was shown on February 29, 1976 at the Meralco Theater
, Pasig City, Philippines. She
was an apprentice and young soloist of Dance Theater Philippines (DTP). She received her advanced certificate from the Royal Academy of Dancing, and earned a scholarship to the Vaganova Choreographic Institute in Leningrad. She became the principal dancer of the renowned Kirov Ballet between 1984 and 1986. She returned to Manila in 1986 and became the first artist-in-residence of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) while dancing with Ballet Philippines. In 1988, she became a ballerina of the Philippine Ballet Theater (PBT) and had since remained Philippine-based, performing as principal ballerina in major local productions and as international guest artist in Russia, Lithuania, Latvia, Ukraine, Georgia, Armenia, the United States, Cuba, Mexico, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, and New Zealand. In 1995, she established her very own ballet company, Ballet Manila, envisioned as a ballet company by the dancers, of the dancers and for the dancers, dance training and education rank among the foremost priorities of the group under the watchful eyes of Macuja-Elizalde and ballet master Osias Barroso, who have drilled the company in the highly-rigorous Russian (Vaganova) method of classical ballet.
During the first 10 years of Ballet Manila’s touring, Lisa Macuja-Elizalde has led the Company on four performance tours of 16 cities in Russia, four performance tours of 15 cities in the U.S.A., and in Arts Festivals such as the Aberdeen Youth Festival in Scotland, and the Folk Arts Festival in South Korea, the Asia Arts Festival in Beijing, China, the Angkor-Gyeongju World Culture Expo in Angkor-Wat, Cambodia and the Philippine Fiesta in Japan. She also led her Company in Outreach performance tours of more than 45 cities and towns throughout the Philippines.
, Russia. She trained under former Kirov ballerina Tatiana Alexandrovna Udalenkova who taught her the Russian Vaganova technique. At the Leningrad Choreographic School, she was coached by Natalia M. Dudinskaya, then, under the artistic director Konstantin Sergeyev. She graduated at the top of her class in 1984, as she became the first foreign soloist to be invited to join the Kirov ballet. At the Kirov, she was taught by Galina P. Kekisheva, under artistic director, Oleg Vinogradov. It was at the historical Maryinsky Theater that she first premiered as principal ballerina in The Nutcracker, Don Quixote, and Giselle.
In 1984, on a television interview during the 245th graduation program of the Leningrad Choreographic School at St. Petersburg, Russia, Konstantin Sergeyev spoke this words in Russian language (translated to English) about Lisa Macuja: "Especially remarkable is Lisa Macuja, who is exceptionally gifted. She is striking. She is like a spark, a spark full of life. She is graceful and virtuosic in her technique. She excites the audience. This is a great art; and it is her art and her natural talent."
She received an Associate of Arts degree in General Studies in 2004, and her Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management (with honors) in 2007, from the University of Phoenix, U.S.A., which is an online correspondence school.
It was on March 11, 2007 when Macuja-Elizalde launched her radio show aptly billed as 'Art 2 Art', with the hope to nurture a relationship between the Filipino audience and the artists, thereby, further promoting art consciousness to the public with a lively exchange of ideas and experiences by guest artists on radio. Macuja-Elizalde's 'Art 2 Art' is produced by the Manila Broadcasting Company, the largest radio network in the Philippines and in Asia with over 500 radio stations all over, with its flagship station DZRH
, the oldest radio station in the Philippines covering 97% of the archipelago.
On October 28, 2008, on its 30th Anniversary, the Catholic Mass Media Awards (CMMA), an event in the Philippines that honors the mass media communicators and the projects that promote Christian values in the most outstanding way during the past year, Art 2 Art was given a special citation as the Best Educational Program in Radio category, "for inspiring people by featuring the stories behind the success of personalities who received the national artist award." Macuja-Elizalde accepted the award in behalf of Art 2 Art.
Early years
She was born at Lourdes Hospital in the City of ManilaManila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
, Philippines. She is the daughter of Cesar Macuja and Susan Pacheco. She is the second among four siblings. Her elder brother, Julio II (Joly) was born in 1963. She had a younger brother who was a teenage actor and musical artist named Jerome who was born in 1967, but died on a fatal car accident on September 30, 1984, just three days before her 20th birthday, during her first season at the Kirov Ballet. She is the sister of Gia Macuja Atchison, actress and musical artist, who was born in 1971, and married to musician Robert Atchison. Raised as a Catholic, she attended St. Theresa's College
St. Theresa's College
St. Theresa's College, , Philippines, is a Catholic private school for girls run by the Missionary Sisters of the "Immaculati Cordis Mariae" or Immaculate Heart of Mary ....
in Quezon City
Quezon City
Quezon City is the former capital and the most populous city in the Philippines. Located on the island of Luzon, Quezon City is one of the cities and municipalities that make up Metro Manila, the National Capital Region. The city was named after Manuel L...
, Philippines, where she was a consistent honor student in grade school until she graduated salutatorian
Salutatorian
Salutatorian is an academic title given, in the United States and Canada, to the second highest graduate of the entire graduating class of a specific discipline. Only the valedictorian is ranked higher. This honor is traditionally based on grade point average and number of credits taken, but...
in her high school class. At age 8, she started her first ballet class with Felicitas Layag-Radaic as her mentor, who kept a vigilant eye on her early years as a ballerina, and saw her through five Royal Academy of Dancing (RAD) syllabus examinations in the ten years while she was under her school. At age 11, she danced onstage for the first time in a ballet recital called Twinkle Toes in Tinsel Land that was shown on February 29, 1976 at the Meralco Theater
Meralco Theater
Meralco Theater is a theater on Ortigas Avenue in Pasig City, Philippines. It was previously known as the Meralco Auditorium.It seats over 1,000 people.-Current Tenants:*Sunday Mass ServiceCurrent Events...
, Pasig City, Philippines. She
was an apprentice and young soloist of Dance Theater Philippines (DTP). She received her advanced certificate from the Royal Academy of Dancing, and earned a scholarship to the Vaganova Choreographic Institute in Leningrad. She became the principal dancer of the renowned Kirov Ballet between 1984 and 1986. She returned to Manila in 1986 and became the first artist-in-residence of the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) while dancing with Ballet Philippines. In 1988, she became a ballerina of the Philippine Ballet Theater (PBT) and had since remained Philippine-based, performing as principal ballerina in major local productions and as international guest artist in Russia, Lithuania, Latvia, Ukraine, Georgia, Armenia, the United States, Cuba, Mexico, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, and New Zealand. In 1995, she established her very own ballet company, Ballet Manila, envisioned as a ballet company by the dancers, of the dancers and for the dancers, dance training and education rank among the foremost priorities of the group under the watchful eyes of Macuja-Elizalde and ballet master Osias Barroso, who have drilled the company in the highly-rigorous Russian (Vaganova) method of classical ballet.
During the first 10 years of Ballet Manila’s touring, Lisa Macuja-Elizalde has led the Company on four performance tours of 16 cities in Russia, four performance tours of 15 cities in the U.S.A., and in Arts Festivals such as the Aberdeen Youth Festival in Scotland, and the Folk Arts Festival in South Korea, the Asia Arts Festival in Beijing, China, the Angkor-Gyeongju World Culture Expo in Angkor-Wat, Cambodia and the Philippine Fiesta in Japan. She also led her Company in Outreach performance tours of more than 45 cities and towns throughout the Philippines.
Career and education
In 1982, she was a scholar of the USSR Ministry of Culture when she entered the Vaganova Choreographic Institute, currently known as the Academy of Russian Ballet at Saint PetersburgSaint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
, Russia. She trained under former Kirov ballerina Tatiana Alexandrovna Udalenkova who taught her the Russian Vaganova technique. At the Leningrad Choreographic School, she was coached by Natalia M. Dudinskaya, then, under the artistic director Konstantin Sergeyev. She graduated at the top of her class in 1984, as she became the first foreign soloist to be invited to join the Kirov ballet. At the Kirov, she was taught by Galina P. Kekisheva, under artistic director, Oleg Vinogradov. It was at the historical Maryinsky Theater that she first premiered as principal ballerina in The Nutcracker, Don Quixote, and Giselle.
In 1984, on a television interview during the 245th graduation program of the Leningrad Choreographic School at St. Petersburg, Russia, Konstantin Sergeyev spoke this words in Russian language (translated to English) about Lisa Macuja: "Especially remarkable is Lisa Macuja, who is exceptionally gifted. She is striking. She is like a spark, a spark full of life. She is graceful and virtuosic in her technique. She excites the audience. This is a great art; and it is her art and her natural talent."
She received an Associate of Arts degree in General Studies in 2004, and her Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management (with honors) in 2007, from the University of Phoenix, U.S.A., which is an online correspondence school.
Media personality
DZRH
DZRH is a radio station in Metro Manila owned and operated by the Manila Broadcasting Company. The station's studio is located at CCP Complex in Pasay, Philippines, while its transmitter is located at Brgy. Malanday, Valenzuela...
, the oldest radio station in the Philippines covering 97% of the archipelago.
On October 28, 2008, on its 30th Anniversary, the Catholic Mass Media Awards (CMMA), an event in the Philippines that honors the mass media communicators and the projects that promote Christian values in the most outstanding way during the past year, Art 2 Art was given a special citation as the Best Educational Program in Radio category, "for inspiring people by featuring the stories behind the success of personalities who received the national artist award." Macuja-Elizalde accepted the award in behalf of Art 2 Art.
Awards
- Special Prize for Artistry by the House of Diaghilev in Moscow (1992)
- International Diaghilev Ballet Competition in Moscow, Russia, 5th Place (1992)
- USA International Ballet Competition in Jackson, Mississippi, Semi-Finalist (Senior Division) (1990)
- Quezon City's Outstanding Citizen Award (1989)
- Manila's Patnubay ng Kalinangan at Sining (1988)
- Asia-Pacific Ballet Competition in Tokyo, Silver Medal (1987)
Recognitions
- Pearl of the Orient Award (2008)
- The Order of International Friendship awarded by Russian President Vladimir Putin (2001)
- Ten Outstanding Young Persons of the World (TOYP U.S.A, 1997)
- Ten Outstanding Young Filipinos (TOYF, 1995)
- The Outstanding Women in Nation's Service (TOWNS, 1989)
- Outstanding female lead performance in a dance production (Gawad Buhay Awards for the Performing Arts, 2008)
External links
- http://www.balletmanila.ph The official Ballet Manila website.
- http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/09112008/life05.html Lisa Macuja Elizalde in Halo-Halo Supreme
- http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2007/sept/30/yehey/weekend/20070930week1.html Lisa Macuja in Swan Lake