Tulsa Ballet is a professional American Ballet company located in Tulsa, OK. The artistic mission of Tulsa Ballet is "To preserve the tradition of classical ballet, promote the appreciation of contemporary dance, create works of superior and enduring quality, and educate through exemplary performances, training and outreach programs." The Company has toured throughout the United States and the world and has received consistent critical acclaim.
The company was founded in 1956 by musician Rosalie Talbot and married couple
Roman JasinskiRoman Jasinski was a Polish ballet dancer who performed from 1933-1950 with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. A premier danseur, he was recognized for his elegance and style. After retiring from performing, he and his wife Moscelyne Larkin founded a ballet school in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and in 1956,...
and
Moscelyne LarkinMoscelyne Larkin is one of the "Five Moons", Native American ballerinas from Oklahoma to gain international fame in the 20th century. After dancing with the Original Ballet Russe and the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, she and her husband settled in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where in 1956 they founded the...
. Jasinski and Larkin were famous dancers who were internationally known for their style in the grand
Ballets RussesThe Ballets Russes was an itinerant ballet company from Russia which performed between 1909 and 1929 in many countries. Directed by Sergei Diaghilev, it is regarded as the greatest ballet company of the 20th century. Many of its dancers originated from the Imperial Ballet of Saint Petersburg...
tradition. Under their leadership, the troupe rose to the top echelon in the National Association for Regional Ballet in 1973 and became a fully professional company in 1978. After a successful engagement at
Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn CollegeBrooklyn College is a senior college of the City University of New York, located in Brooklyn, New York, United States.Established in 1930 by the New York City Board of Higher Education, the College had its beginnings as the Downtown Brooklyn branches of Hunter College and the City College of New...
in 1983, a 1986 West Coast tour, and a return to BCBC in 1988 to perform
George BalanchineGeorge Balanchine , born Giorgi Balanchivadze in Saint Petersburg, Russia, to a Georgian father and a Russian mother, was one of the 20th century's most famous choreographers, a developer of ballet in the United States, co-founder and balletmaster of New York City Ballet...
's reconstructed Mozart's
Violin ConcertoA violin concerto is a concerto for solo violin and instrumental ensemble, customarily orchestra. Such works have been written since the Baroque period, when the solo concerto form was first developed, up through the present day...
, the company was hailed as one of Oklahoma's valuable arts organizations.
In 1990 Roman Larkin Jasinski was appointed to succeed his parents as artistic director of the company. Unfortunately, the company did not thrive under his leadership and at the end of Jasinski's third season, the company began imploding as major conflicts between board members, dancers and the management came to a head. In November 1994, Jasinski tendered his resignation and left the company in chaos.
In 1995 renowned Italian dancer Marcello Angelini was appointed Artistic Director of the Tulsa Ballet. Angelini managed to successfully solve the internal conflicts within the company and raise the artistic achievements of the company simultaneously. He was successful at unifying the board members, working well with artistic director emerita Larkin, and establishing friendly relationships with his predecessors. "His gracious yet fierce tenacity, tough professional reputation, and superior negotiating skills soon earned him the nickname 'The Italian Tornado'."
Since Angelini began directing Tulsa Ballet in 1995, he has built a strong and highly versatile company that is capable of tackling both classical and contemporary works by well-known choreographers. The Italian-born, Kiev Institute-trained director expects dancers to achieve a technical level and artistic range comparable to that of the major companies he danced with (
Deutsche Oper BerlinThe Deutsche Oper Berlin is an opera company located in the Charlottenburg district of Berlin, Germany. The resident building is also home to the Berlin State Ballet.-History:...
,
Les Grands Ballets CanadiensLes Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal is a Canadian ballet company based in Montreal, Quebec.It was founded in 1957 by Ludmilla Chiriaeff. Conductor and composer Michel Perrault served as the organization's first music director. In 2000, Gradimir Pankov became Artistic Director...
,
Ballet WestBallet West, Salt Lake City, Utah was founded in 1963 by Glenn Walker Wallace, who served as its first president. It was called the Utah Civic Ballet company. Willam F...
). To grow a company, Angelini says, you have to stretch the dancer one way, then the other.
Angelini believes different styles--classical, modern, and contemporary--are parts of the same language. "It's all dance," he says, forming a large circle with his arms. "It's like my shoulder connects to my arm which connects to my hand. You can't separate them." Angelini's incredible gifts have helped shape Tulsa ballet into one of America's best ballet companies.
Tulsa ballet creates five productions annually in addition to The Nutcracker and reaches an audience of over 48,000 individuals every season. Under Angelini's leadership, the company has undertaken an ambitious repertory building program. For the past eleven years, Tulsa Ballet has added more than 60 new works to its repertory, many of which have been either American Premieres or World Premieres. Many of the world's best choreographers have worked with Tulsa Ballet including: Leonide Massine,
Antony TudorAntony Tudor was an English ballet choreographer, teacher and dancer.-Biography:Tudor, born William Cook, discovered dance accidentally. He began dancing professionally with Marie Rambert in 1928, becoming general assistant for her Ballet Club the next year...
,
Jerome RobbinsJerome Robbins was an American theater producer, director, and choreographer known primarily for Broadway Theater and Ballet/Dance, but who also occasionally directed films and directed/produced for television. His work has included everything from classical ballet to contemporary musical theater...
,
George BalanchineGeorge Balanchine , born Giorgi Balanchivadze in Saint Petersburg, Russia, to a Georgian father and a Russian mother, was one of the 20th century's most famous choreographers, a developer of ballet in the United States, co-founder and balletmaster of New York City Ballet...
, Paul Taylor,
Kurt JoossKurt Jooss was a famous ballet dancer and choreographer mixing classical ballet with theatre; he is also widely regarded as the founder of dance theatre or tanztheater...
, John Butler,
Nacho DuatoJuan Ignacio Duato Bárcia, also known as Nacho Duato is a Spanish modern ballet dancer and choreographer. After a long and successful career, he was selected by the Spanish Ministry of Culture and Education as the artistic director of the National Spanish Dance Company in June 1990...
(ten works), Val Caniparoli who is its resident choreographer (with seven works and four world premieres),
Stanton Welch-Early Life:Welch was born in Melbourne to Marilyn Jones and Garth Welch, two prominent Australian dancers.-Career:Welch was initially trained at the dance school run by his parents...
, Luciano Cannito,
Young Soon HueYoung Soon Hue is a contemporary ballet choreographer. She was born in South Korea and trained in South Korea and France. She began her professional career at Frankfurt Ballet, Germany, under the direction of William Forsythe and continued in Switzerland with Zurich Ballet and as soloist at Basel...
, Ma Cong, Lila York,
Twyla TharpTwyla Tharp is an American dancer and choreographer, who lives and works in New York City.-Early years:Tharp was born in 1941 on a farm in Portland, Indiana, and was named after Twila Thornburg, the "Pig Princess" of the 89th Annual Muncie Fair in Indiana.she spend hours working on it to help her...
and many others.
In its first international tour in 2002, Tulsa Ballet was declared by the Portuguese national magazine Semanario “One of the best in the world.” The company has received two feature articles in Dance Magazine during the past seven years, has been featured in the New York Times , Pointe Magazine and Dance Europe among others. In March 2008, Tulsa Ballet was featured on the cover of Pointe magazine- a distinction given to only one ballet company each year. In April 2008, Tulsa Ballet completed an ambitious $17.3 million integrated campaign, which was celebrated at the opening of the brand new Studio K; an on-site, three hundred-seat performance space dedicated to the creation of new works.
Principal dancers
Soloists
Demi-Soloists
Corps de balletIn ballet, the corps de ballet is the group of dancers who are not soloists. They are a permanent part of the ballet company and often work as a backdrop for the principal dancers. A corps de ballet works as one, with synchronized movements and corresponding positioning on the stage...
- Alex Harrison
- Alexandra Christian
- Andres Figueroa
- Beatrice Sebelin
- Diana Gomez
- Elise Miller
- Erin Pritchard
- Federica Bagnera
- Florent Bouyat
- Gwenaelle Poline
- Ian Buchanan
- Jonnathan Ramierz Mejia
- Jose Antonio Checa Romero
- Joshua Stayton
- Laura Suttle
- Nathan McGinnis
- Rodrigo Hermesmeyer
- Sarah Jane Crespo
- Susanna Salvi