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Dear Friends,
With 2017 coming to a close, we want to thank you for being a part of the Youth America Grand Prix family. We are happy to share with you our journey to ensure the future of dance. We look forward to working with you in the upcoming year.
With 36 countries represented at the YAGP 2017 Finals, the one word that best describes the current season is GROWTH. Our international semi-finals have included São Paulo, Brazil; Shenzhen, China; Seoul, South Korea; Melbourne and Sydney, Australia; Osaka, Japan; Córdoba, Mexico; Paris, France; and a new location in Barcelona, Spain. We presented a record-breaking number of scholarships at this year's international semi-finals, and we are now entering the U.S. semi-finals season with more locations and registered participants than ever before.
We hope you enjoy seeing some of YAGP's most memorable moments from 2017 -- and look forward to creating more exciting memories with you in 2018!
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YAGP is most proud of the success of our alumni. We are thrilled to share with you some of the alumni highlights from 2017. For more alumni news, visit
www.yagp.org
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AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE
SARAH LANE, Principal Dancer
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Sarah at YAGP 2002 Finals where she was awarded the Bronze medal
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Sarah performing in 2017 as a
Principal Dancer
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CHRISTINE SHEVCHENKO, Principal Dancer
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Christine in 2017 preparing for Kitri
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CALVIN ROYAL, III, Soloist
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Calvin in 2017, performing in Alexei Ratmansky's
Serenade After Plato's Symposium
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BOSTON BALLET
JUNXIONG ZHAO, Principal
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Junxiong at YAGP 2011 Finals
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DEREK DUNN, Soloist
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Derek at YAGP 2012 Finals, where he was awarded a Gold medal
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HANNAH BETTES, Second Soloist
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Hannah competing at YAGP 2012 where she was awarded the
Gold medal
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LAWRENCE RINES, Second Soloist
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Lawrence performing at YAGP 2008 Finals
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DUTCH NATIONAL BALLET
SASHA MUKHAMEDOV, Principal
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Sasha
at YAGP in 2007 where she was awarded the
Bronze medal
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Sasha performing at YAGP Gala in Tampa in 2016
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MICHAELA DEPRINCE, Soloist
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Michaela as a finalist at YAGP 2010
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Michaela at Dutch National Ballet in 2017
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ENGLISH NATIONAL BALLET
CESAR CORRALES, Principal
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Cesar at YAGP 2014, where he won the Grand Prix
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Cesar Corrales
, 2014 Grand Prix winner, was promoted to Principal Dancer at English National Ballet.
Cesar
received the 2016 National Dance Awards Critics Circle Award - Outstanding Male Dancer for his performance as Ali the Slave in English National Ballet's production of
Le Corsaire. In December, it was announced that next season Cesar will be joining the Royal Ballet as a
First Soloist.
Cesar with Principal Dancer and Artistic Director Tamara Rojo (English National Ballet) performing the
Pas de Deux from Le Corsaire at the YAGP 2017 Gala, "Stars of Today Meet the Stars of Tomorrow" at Lincoln Center
RINA KANEHARA, Junior Soloist
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Rina at YAGP in 2012, where she was awarded the Gold Medal
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Rina in 2017
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HOUSTON BALLET
TYLER DONATELLI, Soloist
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Tyler at YAGP in 2012 where she was awarded the
Silver medal
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MARIINSKY BALLET
Mariinsky Ballet is known for almost never employing dancers who have not graduated from its School, The Vaganova Academy in St. Petersburg. This year, in an unprecedented move for the company, Mariinsky hired three foreign dancers - all of them YAGP alumni! May Nahagisa (Japan), Camilla Mazzi (Italy) and Victor Caixeta (Brazil) joined the company in September and are already busy learning the company repertoire and adjusting to life in St. Petersburg. May Nagahisa is quickly becoming a favorite for audiences and critics alike, already performing many of the soloist roles.
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May onstage at the Mariinsky Ballet
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May
with YAGP 2012 Grand Prix winner, Mariinsky Principal Dancer
Kimin Kim
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NEW YORK CITY BALLET
ZACHARY CATAZARO, Principal
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Zachary performing with partner Tiler Peck at the YAGP 2017 Gala "Stars of Today Meet the Stars of Tomorrow"
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INDIANA WOODWARD, Soloist
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Indiana at YAGP 2009 Finals
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THE ROYAL BALLET
MARCELINO SAMBÉ, First Soloist
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Marcelino at YAGP in 2009, where he was awarded the Gold Medal
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BENJAMIN ELLA, Soloist
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Benjamin at YAGP in 2008 where he was awarded the Silver Medal
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Benjamin in 2017
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WILLIAM BRACEWELL, Soloist
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William at YAGP in 2010 where he won the Grand Prix
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William in 2017
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William with Gailene Stock, Director of Royal Ballet School and Gary Norman, Senior Ballet Teacher at the Royal Ballet School at the time celebrating his Grand Prix
DAVID YUDES, First Artist
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David at YAGP in 2010 where he was awarded the Gold medal
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SAN FRANCISCO BALLET
SASHA DESOLA, Principal Dancer
ANGELO GRECO, Principal Dancer
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Angelo at YAGP in 2012
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Angelo in 2017
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JENNIFER STAHL, Principal Dancer
ESTEBAN HERNANDEZ, Soloist
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Esteban at YAGP Finals in 2009 where he was awarded the Gold Medal
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Esteban in 2017
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STEVEN MORSE, Soloist
Steven in 2017
STUTTGART BALLET
ADHONAY SOARES DA SILVA, Soloist
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Adhonay at YAGP in 2012, where he was awarded the
Bronze Medal
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Adhonay performing in 2017
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AGNES SU, Demi-Soloist
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Agnes at YAGP in 2010
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Agnes
partnered with
Constantine Allen (awarded Bronze medal in 2008) in 2017
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PRIX DE LAUSANNE
As the world's largest dance network, YAGP continuously seeks to expand its network of opportunity for young dancers worldwide - and this year we have partnered with Prix de Lausanne. As part of the agreement between the two competitions, several YAGP 2017 Finalists received a special Prix de Lausanne award: Artistic Director of Prix de Lausanne Shelly Power personally selected candidates for the 2018 edition of Prix de Lausanne, to take place in Switzerland on January 28 - February 4, 2018. The Award recipients are: Chloe Misseldine (United States), Hanna Park (South Korea), and Makani Yerg (United States). Join us in wishing these dancers success at Prix de Lausanne! For more information about the Award and its winners, click
here
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| Makani Yerg (United States) |
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Chloe Misseldine
(United States)
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XIII MOSCOW INTERNATIONAL BALLET COMPETITION
Youth America Grand Prix is proud of its ongoing relationship with the prestigious
Moscow IBC
, which takes place every four years, including this year in June. Several YAGP participants and alumni received awards and accolades as part of the competition, including
Joy Womack (USA)
and
Victor Goncalves Caixeta
(Brazil) among Seniors;
Soobin Lee
(South Korea) and
Elizabeth Beyer
(United States) among Juniors. For a complete list of winners, please visit the
Moscow IBC website
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Elizabeth Beyer at the YAGP 2017 Finals where she received the special Natalia Makarova Award
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PRIX BENOIS DE LA DANSE
Brooklyn Mack (Washington Ballet) and Jeffrey Cirio (guest artist at English National Ballet) were both nominated for Outstanding Male Dancer. For more information on the Prix Benois de la Danse and the nominees, click
here
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Jeffrey Cirio at YAGP in 2009
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SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE
Already an accomplished classical dancer and YAGP Alum,
Lex Ishimoto has pivoted toward contemporary dance, and went on to
win the 14th season of popular television show,
So You Think You Can Dance in September.
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Lex
at the YAGP 2015 Los Angeles Semi-Final, where he received the Grand Prix
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Lex in a photo shoot for Dance Spirit magazine after winning So You Think You Can Dance
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YOUNG HOPE AWARD
at
PARIS OPERA BALLET
The Paris Opera Ballet awarded its annual Junior company member award
on
September 25, 2017. The Director of the Paris Opera Ballet School, Elisabeth Platel, presented the award to to YAGP Alumna
Bianca Scudamore
and fellow dancer Alexandre Boccara.
Bianca
at YAGP 2014 Finals where she was awarded Bronze medal
DANCER TURNED REAL-LIFE HERO
Alum
Grey Davis
(ABT)
received the
New York City Liberty Medal
for his courageous actions, when he saved a man who was pushed onto the subway tracks in
New York City.
Click the image below for the New York Times article.
Grey
with New York State Senator Brad Hoylman
Grey
dancing with Misty Copeland
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ABT ALUMNA BRINGS FREE CLASSES, WORLD PREMIERES TO SUN VALLEY
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Isabella Boylston
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Born in Sun Valley, Idaho,
Isabella Boylston started dancing at 3 years old, competed in YAGP in 2001, and became a Principal Dancer with American Ballet Theatre in 2014. This year, she took dance back into her community and ventured beyond the stage as the founder and artistic director of the
Ballet Sun Valley
festival. Along with an "education day" of free master classes, the festival programs featured world premiere works, and a stellar cast that included YAGP Alumni
Kimin Kim
(Mariinsky Ballet),
James Whiteside
(ABT), and Calvin Royal (ABT).
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ALUMNUS DANCER'S JUMP TO THE BIG SCREEN
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Sergei posing for a photo shoot with Numero Homme
Kiev-born
Sergei Polunin is one of the most enigmatic dancers performing today. After becoming the youngest Principal Dancer in the history of The Royal Ballet, he stunned the dance world by quitting at the height of his success with the company. He then briefly walked away from dance, only to return as a star of
Steven Cantor
's extremely successful documentary,
Dancer
. Excerpts from the documentary have been
viewed by millions online
- and now Sergei can be seen alongside
Michelle Pfeiffer
and
Johnny Depp
in the 2017 adaptation of
Murder on the Orient Express
. Sergei has come a long way since first
participating in YAGP in 2006
- and we could not be more excited to see where his creative journey will lead him next!
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Sergei performing at YAGP Finals in 2006 where he was awarded the Grand Prix and Outstanding European Dancer Award
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The Launch of the YAGP Alumni Network
In anticipation of its 20th Anniversary Season, YAGP has launched the
Youth America Grand Prix Alumni Network
. Chaired by YAGP Alumna and American Ballet Theatre Principal Dancer, Hee Seo, the Alumni Network provides a forum for all who participated in YAGP to connect, whether or not they chose to pursue a career in dance.
Join
YAGP Alumni Network
today, to gain access to networking opportunities, special access to YAGP performances, events, and more.
Hee at a photo shoot for the NYC Dance Project
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Choreographer Highlight: Garrett Smith
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Garrett Smith at the Bolshoi Theatre, where his work premiered on December 18
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One of the Special Awards presented at the YAGP 2016 Finals was the Outstanding Choreographer Award. Presented by former Artistic Director of the Bolshoi Theatre, Sergei Filin, the Award gave its recipient an opportunity to create new work as part of the Bolshoi's Young Choreographers' Workshop. The Award went to a young choreographer from Utah, Garrett Smith, leading him to an extraordinary opportunity working for the Mariinsky Ballet. "Celestial," premiered in March, and his work for the Bolshoi Theatre's Young Choreographers' Workshop showcase, "Reverse," has just recently received its premiere in Moscow. To see more of Garrett's work, visit his pages on
YouTube and
Facebook.
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Garrett Smith with Sergei Filin after the premiere of "Reverse" at the Bolshoi Theatre Young Choreographers' Workshop
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DANCE MAGAZINE'S 25 TO WATCH IN 2018
We are pleased to recognize the YAGP Alumni who are included in this year's list:
Angelo Greco
, Principal Dancer at the San Francisco Ballet
Alston Macgill
, Company Member at the New York City Ballet
Cesar Corrales
, Principal Dancer at the English National Ballet
May Nagahisa
, Apprentice at the Mariinsky Ballet
Mackenzie Richter
, Demi-Soloist at the Houston Ballet
Marcelino Sambé,
First Soloist at the Royal Ballet
Maine Kawashima, Company Member at Tulsa Ballet
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2017 SEASON AROUND THE WORLD
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Regional Auditions
Due to the high demand of young dance students across North America, YAGP has added additional cities including Phoenix, AZ, Toronto, Ontario, and New York, NY -- giving more dancers access to YAGP's performance and training opportunities in the regional scholarship auditions.
Seattle Semi-Final Gold Medal winner Danil Zinovyev
now at John Cranko School of Stuttgart Ballet
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Atlanta Semi-Final Grand Prix winner
Juliana Missano now at
Atlanta Ballet
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Philadelphia Semi-Final Hope Award winner
J.T. Church
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Finals Week
On April 7 - 14, 2017, YAGP hosted its Finals Week in New York City. The week included a Career Guidance Q&A with YAGP Founder and Artistic Director Larissa Saveliev, a poster signing with Misty Copeland (ABT), Master Classes with world-renowned dancers, performances and scholarship classes for our finalists. The Final Round was held on Wednesday, April 12 at the David H. Koch Theater in Lincoln Center. The full list of 2017 winners and scholarship recipients is available on the
YAGP website
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Julio Bocca teaches a Master Class during YAGP 2017 Finals
Misty signing posters and taking photographs with fans
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Each year, YAGP presents an exciting array of programming in New York City and around the world, through Gala performances, which feature young participants alongside professional dancers, including many YAGP Alumni.
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YAGP NEW YORK GALA
Stars of Today Meet the Stars of Tomorrow
This year, the YAGP 2017 Gala "Stars of Today Meet the Stars of Tomorrow" took place on Thursday, April 13 at the David H. Koch Theater in Lincoln Center. Alumni
Zachary Catazaro (New York City Ballet),
Skylar Brandt
(American Ballet Theatre),
Gabe Stone Shayer
(American Ballet Theatre), and
Cesar Corrales
(English National Ballet), and
Lucia LaCarra, Svetlana Lunkina, Evan McKie, Tiler Peck, Tamara Rojo
were some of the amazing professional dancers.
The evening featured a Lifetime Achievement Award presentation to the former Artistic Director of Ballet West, Boston Ballet, Royal Flanders Ballet, Chairman of the USA IBC, and frequent YAGP guest judge and teacher,
Bruce Marks
. The award was presented by Nina Ananiashvili with the help of one of the YAGP participants, Guinevere Gale.
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Bruce Marks accepts the Lifetime Achievement Award from Nina and Guinevere
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YAGP 2017 Final Gala co-chairs (L to R): Candice Miller, Mary-Kate Olsen, Ashley Olsen, Marcella Guarino, and
Gala host, Keltie Knight
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Olivier Sarkozy and a young dancer at the Gala Dinner
Lucia Lacarra and Marlon Dino (Bavarian State Opera Ballet) performing Light Rain |
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LEGENDS IN DANCE: Julio Bocca
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On April 14, 2017 YAGP celebrated the 50th birthday of Argentine ballet dancer, ABT Principal and Artistic Director of Ballet Sodre Uruguay,
Julio Bocca with a
spectacular Gala performance at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center.
The star-studded program featured Nina Ananiashvili, Joaquin DeLuz Marlon Dino, Gonzalo Garcia, Marcelo Gomes, Isaac Hernandez, Lucia La Carra, Luciana Paris, Tiler Peck, Maria Riccetto and Tamara Rojo and included exclusive archival footage and video greetings from some of Julio's friends around the globe.
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A scene from the Julio Bocca Gala Tribute
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| The all-star cast cheers in celebration of Julio Bocca |
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"STARS OF TODAY MEET THE STARS OF
TOMORROW
" Gala in Tampa, FL
On January 7, 2017, Youth America Grand Prix presented its fifth consecutive Gala performance at the David A. Straz Center for the Performing Arts.
This Gala gives young dancers an opportunity to share the stage with professional ballet dancers and often features YAGP alumni. This year's cast included
Skylar Brandt (American Ballet Theatre),
Gabriele Frola (National Ballet of Canada),
Dylan Gutierrez (Joffrey Ballet),
Brooklyn Mack
(Washington Ballet),
Jeraldine Mendoza
(Joffrey Ballet) and
Gabe Stone Shayer
(American Ballet Theatre).
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Skylar Brandt
and
Gabe Stone Shayer (ABT) perform during YAGP Gala in Tampa
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GALA DE DANZA in Cordoba, Mexico
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YAGP alumni and guest artists participated in the annual Gala de Danza presented by Christina Lyon in Los Cabos, Mexico. This gala gives young dancers an opportunity to perform with professional dancers and our alumni often play a pivotal role as participants in the gala. The cast this year included Juliette Bosco, Cesar Corrales (English National Ballet), Mariana Carillo (USC Glorya Kaufman School of Dance), Gonzalo Garcia (NYCB), Kenedy Kallas, Taro Kurachi (Pennsylvania Ballet), Sophia Lucia, Tate McRae and
Beckanne Sisk (Ballet West).
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Ekaterina Kondaurova (Mariinsky Ballet) and Li'l Buck at Gala de Danza.
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Daniel Ulbricht (NYCB) and Danielle Diniz (Broadway performer)
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Members of First Position Club got an exclusive look at
Daniel Ulbricht
's newest choreography at New York City Center earlier this year.
Patrons received an exclusive look into the creation of a new work by one of the most exciting artists performing today.
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Members of the YAGP Board of Directors and the First Position Club enjoyed a luncheon with the Artistic Director of Pennsylvania Ballet, Angel Corella
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This behind-the-scenes look gave First Position Club members a chance to truly see what YAGP is all about -- giving young dancers performance and education opportunities. This day long activity included a backstage tour of the Pennsylvania Academy of Music and tickets to the regional auditions at Swarthmore College.
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Irene Shen with Pennsylvania Ballet Principal Dancer and YAGP alumnus
Sterling Baca
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Choreographing for Hundreds
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One of the most exciting moments at every year's YAGP Gala is the traditional piece d'occasion, The Grand Defile. Featuring up to 400 YAGP participants on stage at the same time, it is as visually stunning as it is complex to create. This exclusive event allowed First Position Club members a chance to see the magic behind the creation of this exciting work by YAGP's Resident Choreographer,
Carlos dos Santos, Jr.
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This July marked a historic moment for New York City Ballet: the 50th anniversary of the creation of George Balanchine's iconic masterpiece, Jewels. Since then, the ballet has been staged at the world's top companies - and NYCB celebrated by presenting a spectacular performance at Lincoln Center featuring dancers from the company alongside the stars of Paris Opera Ballet and Bolshoi Ballet. One of the highlights of the program was a brilliant performance by Bolshoi ballerina
Olga Smirnova
, who will also star in the YAGP 2018 Gala in New York City.
Since YAGP enjoys a longstanding relationship with all three companies, we decided to put together a celebration of our own. Following the performance, our good friend Susan Gutfreund graciously offered her elegant, landmark residence for a gathering of YAGP's family and friends, Board members, and, of course, the dancers.
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Calvin Royal III (ABT),
Gabe Stone Shayer (ABT), Susan Gutfreund, Marcelo Gomes (ABT), Olga Smirnova (Bolshoi), Harrison Ball (NYCB),
April Giangeruso (ABT), Semyon Chudin (Bolshoi Ballet),
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YAGP Launches Q&A Series
Ask the Expert
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As part of our mission to ensure the future of dance by educating the next generations of dance artists and audiences, this year YAGP launched a new series of live online Q&A sessions. Moderated by TV journalist Sergey Gordeev, ASK THE EXPERT gives dancers, parents and teachers an opportunity to interact with the top professionals in the field and ask questions that interest them the most - about education and performance opportunities, professional growth as an artist, nutrition, health, and physical and emotional well-being.
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John Meehan_ Chair of the Dance Department at Vassar College |
The inaugural session on October 1, 2017 focused on BUILDING A CAREER IN DANCE. YAGP's Founder and Artistic Director
Larissa Saveliev shared tips and professional advice for dancers at all stages of their professional development.
On November 12, Chair of Indiana University's Ballet Department,
Michael Vernon answered questions about college and university dance programs and shared his advice on DANCE IN HIGHER EDUCATION options for young dancers everywhere.
On December 17,
John Meehan
- who has served as Artistic Director of American Ballet Theatre Studio Company, Royal Winnipeg Ballet and Hong Kong Ballet - shared pro tips on how to MASTER YOUR DANCE AUDITION and covered the do's and don'ts of successful auditioning.
The next Q&A session - HOW JUDGES JUDGE, with
Franco de Vita, Charles Askegard and
Natalia Lushina - will take place on January 21, 2018 and will give dancers an inside look into how the YAGP jury panel evaluates each dancer's performance.
We hope this will be a helpful resource to you in your dance education - and look forward to seeing you online!
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Dance Magazine's
Most Influential
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On
June 19, Dance Magazine published its list of "The Most Influential People in Dance Today." YAGP's Founder and Artistic Director,
Larissa Saveliev
, was included in the list for "giving students a chance to measure themselves against peers from across the world - and be seen by directors" of the world's leading dance schools and companies.
"It means so much for our organization to be recognized in such an important way," says Larissa, also a recipient of the prestigious Dance Magazine Award. "It takes a village to support each young artist of the thousands that we reach every year - and I could not be more grateful for the entire YAGP family that works tirelessly to fulfill our mission to ensure the future of dance."
Click
here
for the full article.
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Welcome YAGP's Newest Board Members
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Our Staff Continues to Grow
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Anna Covatta
and
Alysha Dixon
are the newest members of the Development Department and o
ur Regional team is excited to welcome
Aleksandra Franskevich,
Mi Jung, Genia Startseva,
and
Andressa Thorne
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We wish you a h
appy new year!
Remember to save the date for YAGP's 2018 Gala
Stars of Today Meet the Stars of Tomorrow
on
Thursday, April 19, 2017!
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Photo Credits
Visual Arts Masters | Hideaki Tanioka | Taylor Brandt Photography | Mariinsky Ballet website | American Ballet Theatre Facebook Page | Tristram Kenton| Dance Tabs website | Dance Magazine | Critical Dance | Dance Spirit Magazine | Pointe Magazine | Gene Schiavone | Vikki Slovitser | Costas | San Francisco Ballet | Emma Kauldhar |Alice Pennefather|
Dave Friedman | Laurent Liotardo | Amitavan Sarkar
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