FEATURED WORKS BYCHRISTOPHER COSTANTINI

MICHAEL DAVISABDUR-RAHIM JACKSON

PARRISH MAYNARDMONIQUE MEUNIER

EMILY MISTRETTAMARIANA OLIVEIRA

FEB. 15-18, 2018

TODD BOLENDER CENTER FOR DANCE & CREATIVITY

Supporting Sponsor

Dancers: Tempe Ostergren and Joshua Bodden. Photography by Kenny Johnson.

YOU DO YOU!Choreography: Michael Davis

Music: Janglin, Man on Fire and 40 Day Dream by Edward Sharp and the Magnetic Zeroes

The idea for this piece first came from my time studying sociology. The interaction of people and groups is very interesting to me, so I decided to make a piece about the assimilation of an individual into a new group.

Danielle Bausinger, Angelina Sansone, Sarah Joan Smith

Charles Martin, James Kirby Rogers

† 2017-2018 Sally and Thomas J. Wood Senior Dancer Fund honoree. | * Company ApprenticeThe Wood Fund provides support for the salaries of select dancers of the company. Each year, one or more senior members of the company are selected by the artistic director to receive this recognition.

Kevin AmeyGeneral Manager

Parrish MaynardBallet Master

Victoria FrankStage Manager

Ramona PansegrauMusic Director

Ryan Jolicoeur-NyeSecond Company Manager

Neil AndesAssistant Stage Manager

Kristi CappsBallet Master

Amy TaylorProduction Manager

Devon CarneyArtistic Director

Jeffrey J. BentleyExecutive Director

15-MINUTE INTERMISS ION

Kansas City Ballet is an American Guild of Musical Artists company.Cover | Dancers: Amanda DeVenuta and Angelina Sansone. Photography: Kenny Johnson.

All costuming provided by Kansas City Ballet Costume Shop.

Lighting design for all works by Amy Taylor.

KCB II Gavin Abercrombie | Angelin Carrant | Miranda Dafoe Austin Meiteen | Divya Rea | Marisa Whiteman

TRAINEESMadison Braaksma | Katharine Clark | Tyler Ferraro Emma Fridenmaker | Georgia Fuller | Samantha Huebner Emelia Perkins | Allison Rainford | Madeline Wittmann

ARTISTS Danielle Bausinger | Humberto Rivera Blanco | Joshua Bodden | Kaleena Burks Sasha Chernjavsky* | Christopher Costantini | Michael Davis | Amanda DeVenuta Liang Fu | Lilliana Hagerman | Kelsey Hellebuyck | Enrico Hipolito* | Elysa Hotchkiss Whitney Huell | Dillon Malinski | Charles Martin | Taryn Mejia | Emily Mistretta Javier Morales | Tempe Ostergren | Lamin Pereira dos Santos | Gustavo Ribeiro Amaya Rodriguez | James Kirby Rogers | Angelina Sansone† | Sarah Joan Smith Cameron Thomas* | Molly Wagner | Goldie Walberg* | Kevin Wilson

BEAUTY IN CHAOSChoreography: Mariana Oliveira

Music: Bachianas No. 8 by Heitor Villa-LobosArrangement by Hendon Music, Inc., a Boosey & Hawkes company, Sole Agent in the U.S., Canada and Mexico for Editions Max Eschig, © Editions Durand, Paris (Universal Music Publishing Group), publisher and copyright owner Master Recording Courtesy of Naxos of America, Inc.

When listening to the Villa-Lobos composition, the image of a flower in the desert crossed my mind. I wondered if such a thing was even real, and after some research, I discovered the Brazilian “Mandacaru” flower, which is a cactus flower that grows in the desert areas. Two questions struck me: how could something so beautiful and delicate appear in such a precarious condition, and for how long can it survive? Beauty in Chaos, is a reflection on love and time within our modern society.

Amanda DeVenuta

Joshua Bodden, Enrico Hipolito, Gustavo Ribeiro, James Kirby Rogers, Cameron Thomas, Kevin Wilson

Choreography: Abdur-Rahim Jackson

Music: Michael McQuilken

Kaleena Burks, Lilliana Hagerman, Kelsey Hellebuyck, Taryn Mejia

Humberto Rivera Blanco, Sasha Chernjavsky, Michael Davis, Charles Martin

Who am I?Who do you perceive me to be?What do you seeWhen you look at me?

When I gaze at youAm I seeing the You I need you to be to me?Or do I See You pure, clean, pristine?Soul Shine!

And I wonder at my own luminosity.Do I know You, Me?Are you the bona fide or the modified?Tweaked with intention bending my own perception.– Poem by Felice Perry

QUATRE PIÈCES DE CLAVECINChoreography: Monique Meunier

Music: Keyboard selections by Jean-Philippe Rameau, performed live by Kansas City Ballet Music Director Ramona Pansegrau

Quatre Pièces de Clavecin was inspired by the french baroque composer Jean-Philippe Rameau’s Pièces de Clavecin. My ballet consists of four pieces and will be played by Kansas City Ballet Music Director Ramona Pansegrau. I have also been inspired by the Kansas City Ballet dancers. I find they are technically gifted, musically inclined and are willing to challenge themselves as artists and dancers. It has been a true pleasure to work with this esteemed ballet company.

Whitney Huell, Tempe Ostergren, Amaya Rodriguez, Molly Wagner, Goldie Walberg Liang Fu, Lamin Pereira dos Santos

aBnOrMaL Normal

A NOTE FROM THE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Pre-show entertainment provided byKansas City Ballet Second Company (KCB II and Trainees).

FRACTALSChoreography: Parrish Maynard

Music: Kenneth Curshner

A fractal is a numerical equation that never ends and the music is loud and repetitive, the dance is based on hard edgy Forsythe movement.

SUPPORT KANSAS CITY BALLETKansas City Ballet is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. Contributions are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. Your contribution is important to our mission. Contribute today at kcballet.org, 816.931.2232, or make checks payable to Kansas City Ballet, Todd Bolender Center for Dance & Creativity, 500 W. Pershing Rd., Kansas City, MO 64108-2430.

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NEW MOVES

EVANESCOChoreography: Christopher Costantini

Music: Violin Concerto in E Minor, 1st Movement by Felix Mendelssohn

When I initially heard this piece of music on a transatlantic flight many years ago, I immediately knew it would one day be the inspiration for a piece of my choreography. The swelling crescendos and alternating leggieros of the score reflect the peaks and troughs of romance. While any relationship may ultimately be transient, the process through which one develops and evolves is captivating. My work explores these themes.

Emily Mistretta, Joshua Bodden

Welcome to the future of dance and to our home, the Bolender

Center! Our program is made up of works from a cross section of

choreographic perspectives—these talented creators hail from

many different locales and represent emerging voices from

the national dance scene and from within our own ballet

company. Every piece you’ll see was created and

painstakingly rehearsed under this roof. Your presence

is instrumental to live performance—the final step in this

incredible creative cycle. Thank you for bearing witness

to such intense innovation! Please enjoy!

- Devon CarneyBEYOND BLOODChoreography: Emily Mistretta

Music: Family and Genus by Shakey Graves

The feeling of traveling through time and space with the people you came into this world with. There is a sense that you are always connected. Like a transient tether, sometimes invisible and other times palpable. The connection can be a challenge and it can be joyful, but you will continue to walk through the vast infinite together regardless.

Elysa Hotchkiss

Humberto Rivera Blanco, Cameron Thomas

M E E T T H E C H O R E O G R A P H E R S

ABDUR-RAHIM JACKSON Abdur-Rahim received a Bachelor Degree of Fine Arts from The Juilliard School and performed as a Principal Dancer with The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater for a decade and then made his Broadway debut in “Soul Doctor”. He has taught master classes at the International Dance Association in Ravenna, Italy, was a guest teacher at Steps on Broadway, Broadway Dance Center and Adjunct Professor at Marymount Manhattan College. Abdur-Rahim has created ballets for Orlando Ballet, Complexions Contemporary Ballet and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. He co-choreographed

Beyoncé’s “Halo” music video and choreographed the LED sections of Beyoncé “Crazy in Love” Super Bowl XLVII Halftime performance on CBS. Abdur-Rahim has also choreographed the Salt-N-Pepa Lane Bryant Campaign, ULTA Beauty, L’Oréal / Matrix and JCPenney Salons Hair/Fashion Shows across the country and has directed fashion/dance shoots for VIBE and PAPER Magazines.

MICHAEL DAVIS Michael Davis began his ballet training at the Marya Kennett Dance Centre in Goshen, New York, at the age of 10. After attending summer courses at The Rock School for Dance Education in Pennsylvania, he was accepted into their year-round residency program on a merit scholarship. Upon graduating from The Rock School, he joined Oregon Ballet Theatre in 2007 and danced for two years under the direction of Christopher Stowell and Damara Bennett. Mr. Davis has performed in various works by George Balanchine, Twyla Tharp, Jerome Robbins and Christopher Wheeldon.

CHRISTOPHER COSTANTINI Christopher Costantini, a native of Milan, Italy, started his dance training at Princeton Ballet School, at the age of 12. After attending summer courses at American Ballet Theatre in New York City, he completed his pre-professional studies at San Francisco Ballet School on full scholarship. Upon graduation, he appeared with the Paris Opera Ballet in Maurice Béjart’s Bolero for the company’s 2012 North American tour. Mr. Costantini subsequently joined Oregon Ballet Theatre, where he danced for two years. Since joining Kansas City Ballet, Mr. Costantini has had the pleasure of performing in

Balanchine’s The Four Temperaments, Val Caniparoli’s The Lottery, Devon Carney’s The Nutcracker and Septime Webre’s Alice (in wonderland.)

MARIANA OLIVEIRA Mariana Oliveira is the Choreographer and Artistic Director of The Union Project Dance Company. Originally from Brazil, she studied at the Royal Academy of Dance in London, and was a trainee dancer at the National Dance Company of Wales. She has recently created new works for the Milwaukee Ballet, Joffrey Ballet Studio Company, and Arkansas Ballet. Mariana has presented works at the Jacob’s Pillow Festival, and for 2 consecutive years has been a finalist of the McCallum Theatre Choreography Festival. Mariana is also a recipient of The Center for Ballet and the Arts 2017 Fellowship at NYU.

MONIQUE MEUNIER Monique Meunier was born in Hollywood, CA. Her father is Cuban and mother is Ecuadorian. As a young girl in Los Angeles, she earned spots in various commercials, music videos, sitcoms, and short films. At the age of 15, she received a full scholarship to attend the School of American Ballet in NYC. Miss Meunier was asked to join the New York City Ballet one year later. In 1996, she was promoted to soloist and reached the rank of principal dancer in 1997. There she performed numerous roles by Balanchine,

Robbins, Martins, Wheeldon, and Forsythe, as well as, Odette/Odile in Swan Lake. In 2002, Meunier joined American Ballet Theater where she added the classics, Tudor, and Kylian to her repertoire. In 2007, she joined Complexions Contemporary Ballet under the direction of Dwight Rhoden and Desmond Richardson. Miss Meunier has staged Balanchine ballets for the Balanchine Trust and has served as rehearsal director for Karole Armitage. In 2010, she became ballet master for Washington Ballet and in 2011 became director of TWB’s Trainee Program and faculty of The School of Washington Ballet. She has also ventured into choreography and has created works for Lake Placid Arts Center and The Columbia Collaborative. Miss Meunier is now highly acclaimed for her teaching and coaching and is a permanent adjudicator for Youth American Grand Prix. In 2016, Miss Meunier appointed to the inaugural committee of School of American Ballet’s Alumni Advisory Committee on Diversity and Inclusion.

EMILY MISTRETTA Emily Mistretta began her training at Inland Pacific Ballet Academy in Montclair, California. In 2005, Emily attended Boston Ballet’s Summer Dance Program, where she was asked to join the Boston Ballet School and received a tuition scholarship with generous funding from Jack Rugheimer. In 2006, Ms. Mistretta joined Boston Ballet II, and she was promoted to Corps de Ballet in 2008. Ms. Mistretta has been featured in several works throughout her career with Boston Ballet, including; various works by George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins, Florence Clerc’s La

Bayadère, Michel Fokine’s Les Sylphides, The Sleeping Beauty, Jirí Kylián’s Bella Figura, Wings of Wax, Tar and Feathers, Symphony of Psalms and Alexander Ekman’s Cacti.

PARRISH MAYNARD Parrish Maynard danced with American Ballet Theatre, where he was invited to join by Mikhail Baryshnikov, and as a principal dancer at The Joffrey Ballet and San Francisco Ballet. In addition to being a recipient of the Princess Grace Award and the Presidential Scholar Award, he was a silver medalist in the International Ballet Competition. Mr. Maynard has performed in Dance in America, American Ballet Theatre’s ‘Now’, danced Nacho Duato’s Romanso, San Francisco Ballet Lar Lubovich’s Othello in the role of Iago which was created on him. In 2005 Mr. Maynard joined the faculty of San Francisco

Ballet School. In his 10 years at San Francisco Ballet, Mr. Maynard choreographed more than 20 ballets for the San Francisco Ballet School, some of which have been danced around the world including Royal Ballet School, Royal New Zealand Ballet and National Ballet of Canada.