ATLANTA BALLET
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BLUMENTHAL PERFORMING ARTS
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COMPANY BALLET REPETITEURS
Angela Agresti, Rory Hohenstein, Eduardo Permuy
CHOREOGRAPHER-IN-RESIDENCE
Claudia Schreier
DEAN OF THE CENTRE FOR DANCE EDUCATION
Sharon Story
THE COMPANY
Jessica Assef, Nadyne Bispo, Severin Brotschul, Emily Carrico, Michael Caye, Anastasia Cheplyansky, Dylan Clinard, Catherine Conley, Georgia Dalton, Larissa Dal’Santo, Thomas Davidoff, Brooke Gilliam, Sujin Han, Jessica He, Airi Igarashi, Darian Kane, Erik Kim, Benjamin Kuefler, Saho Kumagai, Sojung Lee, Jordan Leeper, Guilherme Maciel, Sergio Masero, Juliana Missano, Miguel Angel Montoya, Denys Nedak, Carraig New, Patric Palkens, Hui Wen Peng, Ángel Ramírez, Evelyn Robinson, Kaitlin Matree Roemer, Mikaela Santos, Anderson Souza, Fuki Takahashi, Kelsey Van Tine, Ashley Wegmann, Spencer Wetherington, Luiz Fernando Xavier
ATLANTA BALLET 2
Santiago Bedoya, Georgie Grace Butler, Ephraim Fowler, Will Giannuzzi, Gianna Horton-Sibble, Avery Jarrard, Breanna Faith Justus, Emmanuel López, Stephen Myers, Mayu Nakayama, Estefania Ontanilla, Emma Sophia Robinson, Samantha Schuermann, Paxton Speight, Emanuel Talongo, Covin Washington
Dorothy Moses Alexander - Atlanta Ballet Founder, 1929 - 1960
Robert Barnett - Artistic Director Emeritus, 1961 - 1994
John McFall – Artistic Director, 1994 - 2016
The humorous yet dramatic plot of the ballet opens with Don Quixote receiving a shave from the young village barber, Basilio, before retreating to his beloved books and drifting off into a fantasy world where he dreams of noble crusades, slaying monsters, courtly tournaments and the love of a fair maiden, Dulcinea. He is awakened by the mischievous peasant, Sancho Panza, who has stolen a ham. Don Quixote protects him and, in exchange, convinces Sancho Panza to be his squire. Don Quixote arms himself and, along with a haggard horse, the two men head off in search of adventure and romance.
In the village square, the men meet the innkeeper, Lorenzo, who wishes to wed his beautiful and spirited daughter, Quiteria “Kitri”, to the old yet wealthy nobleman, Gamache. However, Kitri only has eyes for Basilio and hopes to escape her arranged marriage. Upon his arrival at the plaza, the deluded Don Quixote glimpses Kitri and is smitten by her beauty and innocence. He mistakes her for Dulcinea, the woman of his dreams. Meanwhile, the famous toreador Espada dances with the other bullfighters and his girlfriend, Mercedes, the street dancer. While the townspeople celebrate, Sancho Panza steals a string of sausages. Sancho Panza is badly teased by the townspeople, and, amid the chaos, Kitri and Basilio flee the village, leaving behind the forlorn Lorenzo and Gamache.
Later, in the rolling hills of La Mancha, Don Quixote spots windmills, mistaking them for monsters and dragons. In his attempt to slay them, he is wounded. Later at home in his bed, he suffers from more hallucinations and in his delirium, is visited by Amore, a cupid reminding him of the healing power of love. Don Quixote imagines he is being led into a world of dryads (tree nymphs) and has a vision of Kitri as Dulcinea. Healed by this dream, Don Quixote heads back into village society and unwittingly helps Basilio and Kitri override her father’s plans. Finally, the wedding takes place, with Don Quixote and Sancho Panza as guests of honor. Kitri and Basilio dance, and as the festivities continue, Don Quixote and Sancho Panza bid farewell to the wedding party… home to rest for their next adventure.
The story concludes with Don Quixote in his bed chamber, reading of chivalry and dreaming of his next great quest.
G E N NADI
NE DVIGIN ( Ar tistic Director), in Februar y 2016 , was named
Atlanta Ballet’s fourth artistic director in the Company’s then 87-year history. Nedvigin, born in Rostov, Russia, began his training at age 5. At 10, he was accepted into the Bolshoi Ballet Academy. Upon graduating, he joined Moscow Renaissance Ballet, as a soloist, before he was invited to dance with Le Jeune Ballet de France in Paris. In 1997, while on tour in the U.S., San Francisco Ballet (SFB) Artistic Director Helgi Tomasson offered Nedvigin a soloist contract. After three years, he was promoted to principal dancer. While at SFB, Nedvigin won the International Competition’s Erik Bruhn Prize (1999). He has also received three Isadora Duncan Dance Awards (2001, 2010 and 2017). Along the way, Nedvigin was fortunate to work with many world-renowned choreographers. In addition to his dancing career, Nedvigin also taught master classes and staged ballets in the U.S. and abroad before becoming an artistic director. Recently, Nedvigin sat on juried panels at the World Ballet Competition in Orlando, the International Ballet Competition held in Jackson, Mississippi, and the Youth America Grand Prix. Under Nedvigin’s guidance, Atlanta Ballet has established the Academy training program, which includes a top-tier performance ensemble, Atlanta Ballet 2, representing his commitment to training for the next generation of professional dancers.
GENNADI NEDVIGIN (Artistic Director), in February 2016, was named Atlanta Ballet’s fourth artistic director in the Company’s then 87-year history. Nedvigin, born in Rostov, Russia, began his training at age 5. At 10, he was accepted into the Bolshoi Ballet Academy. Upon graduating, he joined Moscow Renaissance Ballet as a soloist before he was invited to dance with Le Jeune Ballet de France in Paris. In 1997, while on tour in the U.S., San Francisco Ballet (SFB) Artistic Director Helgi Tomasson offered Nedvigin a soloist contract. After three years, he was promoted to principal dancer. While at SFB, Nedvigin won the International Competition’s Erik Bruhn Prize (1999). He has also received three Isadora Duncan Dance Awards (2001, 2010 and 2017). Along the way, Nedvigin was fortunate to work with many world-renowned choreographers. In addition to his dancing career, Nedvigin also taught master classes and staged ballets in the U.S. and abroad before becoming an artistic director. Recently, Nedvigin sat on juried panels at the World Ballet Competition in Orlando, the International Ballet Competition held in Jackson, Mississippi, and the Youth America Grand Prix. Under Nedvigin’s guidance, Atlanta Ballet has established the Academy training program, which includes a top-tier performance ensemble, Atlanta Ballet 2, representing his commitment to training for the next generation of professional dancers.
Atlanta Ballet’s fourth artistic director in the Company’s then 87-year history. Nedvigin, born in Rostov, Russia, began his training at age 5. At 10, he was accepted into the Bolshoi Ballet Academy. Upon graduating, he joined Moscow Renaissance Ballet, as a soloist, before he was invited to dance with Le Jeune Ballet de France in Paris. In 1997, while on tour in the U.S., San Francisco Ballet (SFB) Artistic Director Helgi Tomasson offered Nedvigin a soloist contract. After three years, he was promoted to principal dancer. While at SFB, Nedvigin won the International Competition’s Erik Bruhn Prize (1999). He has also received three Isadora Duncan Dance Awards (2001, 2010 and 2017). Along the way, Nedvigin was fortunate to work with many world-renowned choreographers. In addition to his dancing career, Nedvigin also taught master classes and staged ballets in the U.S. and abroad before becoming an artistic director. Recently, Nedvigin sat on juried panels at the World Ballet Competition in Orlando, the International Ballet Competition held in Jackson, Mississippi, and the Youth America Grand Prix. Under Nedvigin’s guidance, Atlanta Ballet has established the Academy training program, which includes a top-tier performance ensemble, Atlanta Ballet 2, representing his commitment to training for the next generation of professional dancers.
TOM WEST (Executive Director)
assumed his role as Atlanta Ballet’s
TOM WEST (Executive Director)
assumed his role as Atlanta Ballet’s
Executive Director at the top of the 2021 | 2022 Season. West’s career in arts management spans for more than 20 years including leadership roles at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Segerstrom Center for the Arts and American Film Institute. An actor and theatre director by training, West received a Master of Arts in arts administration from American University and began his career in arts management at the Kennedy Center in 1997, where he rose to the serve as Vice President of Development, overseeing all fundraising programs for the National Symphony Orchestra and the Suzanne Farrell Ballet, and leading the effort to fund a remount of Balanchine’s Don Quixote. In 2007, West served as Vice President of Development for the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa, California. From 2010-2021, West served as the Chief Advancement Officer for the American Film Institute in Los Angeles, where he championed the development of new programs to provide bridges to the film industry for under-represented storytellers in Hollywood. West also served on AFI’s senior leadership team, shaping organizational strategy for the Institute’s filmmaker training programs and working with major studios developing on targeted diversity initiatives, as well as its strategy for weathering the COVID-19 pandemic. West established the AFI National Council in 2011, a community of philanthropists from across the United States who serve as champions for excellence in the art of film and opportunities for the next generation of great storytellers.
Executive Director at the top of the 2021 | 2022 Season. West’s career in arts management spans for more than 20 years including leadership roles at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Segerstrom Center for the Arts and American Film Institute. An actor and theatre director by training, West received a Master of Arts in arts administration from American University and began his career in arts management at the Kennedy Center in 1997, where he rose to the serve as Vice President of Development, overseeing all fundraising programs for the National Symphony Orchestra and the Suzanne Farrell Ballet, and leading the effort to fund a remount of Balanchine’s Don Quixote. In 2007, West served as Vice President of Development for the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa, California. From 2010-2021, West served as the Chief Advancement Officer for the American Film Institute in Los Angeles, where he championed the development of new programs to provide bridges to the film industry for under-represented storytellers in Hollywood. West also served on AFI’s senior leadership team, shaping organizational strategy for the Institute’s filmmaker training programs and working with major studios developing on targeted diversity initiatives, as well as its strategy for weathering the COVID-19 pandemic. West established the AFI National Council in 2011, a community of philanthropists from across the United States who serve as champions for excellence in the art of film and opportunities for the next generation of great storytellers.
TOM WEST (Executive Director) assumed his role as Atlanta Ballet’s Executive Director at the top of the 2021 | 2022 Season. West’s career in arts management spans more than 20 years, including leadership roles at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Segerstrom Center for the Arts and American Film Institute. An actor and theatre director by training, West received a Master of Arts in arts administration from American University and began his career in arts management at the Kennedy Center in 1997, where he rose to serve as Vice President of Development, overseeing all fundraising programs for the National Symphony Orchestra and the Suzanne Farrell Ballet, and leading the effort to fund a remount of Balanchine’s Don Quixote. In 2007, West served as Vice President of Development for the Segerstrom Center for the Arts in Costa Mesa, California. From 2010-2021, West served as the Chief Advancement Officer for the American Film Institute in Los Angeles, where he championed the development of new programs to provide bridges to the film industry for under-represented storytellers in Hollywood. West also served on AFI’s senior leadership team, shaping organizational strategy for the Institute’s filmmaker training programs and working with major studios developing targeted diversity initiatives, as well as its strategy for weathering the COVID-19 pandemic. West established the AFI National Council in 2011, a community of philanthropists from across the United States who serve as champions for excellence in the art of film and opportunities for the next generation of great storytellers.
S HARO N S TO RY (D ean of the C entre for D ance Education) joined Atlanta Ballet after a professional dance career that spanned more than 20 years and included tenures with Joffrey Ballet, the School of American Ballet, Stars of New York City Ballet, Atlanta Ballet and 10 years with Boston Ballet. Her Boston Ballet tenure included international tours with Rudolf Nureyev. In 1996, along with her role as ballet mistress, Story became dean of Atlanta Ballet Centre for Dance Education (Centre), which has grown to become one of the largest dance schools in the nation. The Centre is nationally recognized for its programs and community initiatives. Under Story’s direction, the Centre achieved accreditation with the National Association of Schools of Dance (NASD). She serves on the board of directors for NASD. In 2021, Story received Atlanta Ballet’s Dorothy Alexander Award. She received the 2015 Women Making a Mark Award from Atlanta Magazine and was featured in the Arts ATL Legacy Series 2018. Story is committed to providing a noncompetitive atmosphere and access to dance education that is shaped by the community’s needs, is innovative and inspires the commitment and excellence that are the trademarks of Atlanta Ballet.
S HARO N S TO RY (D ean of the C entre for D ance Education) joined Atlanta Ballet after a professional dance career that spanned more than 20 years and included tenures with Joffrey Ballet, the School of American Ballet, Stars of New York City Ballet, Atlanta Ballet and 10 years with Boston Ballet. Her Boston Ballet tenure included international tours with Rudolf Nureyev. In 1996, along with her role as ballet mistress, Story became dean of Atlanta Ballet Centre for Dance Education (Centre), which has grown to become one of the largest dance schools in the nation. The Centre is nationally recognized for its programs and community initiatives. Under Story’s direction, the Centre achieved accreditation with the National Association of Schools of Dance (NASD). She serves on the board of directors for NASD. In 2021, Story received Atlanta Ballet’s Dorothy Alexander Award. She received the 2015 Women Making a Mark Award from Atlanta Magazine and was featured in the Arts ATL Legacy Series 2018. Story is committed to providing a noncompetitive atmosphere and access to dance education that is shaped by the community’s needs, is innovative and inspires the commitment and excellence that are the trademarks of Atlanta Ballet.
SHARON STORY (Dean of the Centre for Dance Education) joined Atlanta Ballet after a professional dance career that spanned more than 20 years and included tenures with Joffrey Ballet, the School of American Ballet, Stars of New York City Ballet, Atlanta Ballet and 10 years with Boston Ballet. Her Boston Ballet tenure included international tours with Rudolf Nureyev. In 1996, along with her role as ballet mistress, Story became dean of Atlanta Ballet Centre for Dance Education (Centre), which has grown to become one of the largest dance schools in the nation. The Centre is nationally recognized for its programs and community initiatives. Under Story’s direction, the Centre achieved accreditation with the National Association of Schools of Dance (NASD). She serves on the board of directors for NASD. In 2021, Story received Atlanta Ballet’s Dorothy Alexander Award. She received the 2015 Women Making a Mark Award from Atlanta Magazine and was featured in the Arts ATL Legacy Series 2018. Story is committed to providing a noncompetitive atmosphere and access to dance education that is shaped by the community’s needs, is innovative and inspires the commitment and excellence that are the trademarks of Atlanta Ballet.
ANGELA AGRESTI (Company Repetiteur) grew up in Indianapolis, Indiana, where she began her training at the Jordon College Academy of Dance. In high school, she transferred to North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) for ballet where she worked closely with mentor Anna-Marie Holmes. After UNCSA, Agresti went on to dance with Cincinnati Ballet for one season before moving to Amsterdam to be in Het Nationale Ballet (Dutch National Ballet) where she danced for eight years. While at Het Nationale Ballet, she danced a mix of classical ballets, Balanchine works, Hans van Manen repertoire, contemporary and neoclassical works, along with new creations. Agresti has been featured in William Forsythe’s Second Detail, Alexei Ratmansky’s Don Quichot, Shen Wei’s Sacre du Printemps, and other notable ballets, such as The Dream, Paquita and Swan Lake During her time dancing in Amsterdam, Agresti gained experience as a choreographic assistant for multiple choreographers’ stage, film and festival works. She traveled to Riom, Switzerland, assisting works by Juanjo Arques and Peter Leung for the Origen Cultural Festival. She also worked with Peter Leung on the first-ever virtual reality ballet titled Nightfall. Since returning to the U.S. in 2018, Agresti has been teaching, coaching and rehearsing dancers at the collegiate, preprofessional and professional levels. She held positions at Butler University and Anderson University, and as a company ballet teacher and rehearsal assistant at Gregory Hancock Dance Theatre. In 2018, she assisted Annabelle Lopez Ochoa in the making of Tulips and Lobster for Kansas City Ballet and re-staged the work for the company the following season. She holds certifications in the ABT National Training Curriculum for levels
Pre-Primary through Level 5 and has received Basi Pilates teacher training for mat Pilates and reformer. She is certified as an integrative nutrition health coach and holds a Nonprofit Management Certificate from the University of California Irvine. Agresti is looking forward to working with the wonderfully talented dancers and artistic team of Atlanta Ballet led by Gennadi Nedvigin.
RORY HOHENSTEIN (Company Repetiteur) was born in Washington D.C., where he began dancing at the age of 6. Hohenstein furthered his training from the age of 12 at the Kirov Academy of Ballet. At 17, he joined Le Jeune Ballet de France in Paris. In 2000, he joined San Francisco Ballet as a member of the corps, being promoted to soloist in 2006. In 2008, he moved to New York, joining Christopher Wheeldon’s company, Morphoses, performing in its home seasons at New York City Center and at Sadler’s Wells in London. He spent a season dancing with the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company before joining the Joffrey Ballet in 2011, where he continued to be a leading artist with the company through the 2018/19 season. Some personal highlights include dancing the roles of Romeo in Krzysztof Pastor’s Romeo & Juliet, Riff in Jerome Robbins’ West Side Story Suite, Levin in Yuri Possokhov’s Anna Karenina and in Wayne McGregor’s Eden/Eden. This is Hohenstein’s third season as company repetiteur at Atlanta Ballet.
EDUARDO PERMUY (Company Repetiteur) was born in Cuba, where he began his training at the age of 7 at Laura Alonso’s ballet school Pro-Danza, later joining the National Ballet School of Cuba and finishing at Miami City Ballet School under the tutelage of Nancy Raffa. At the age of 17, Permuy started his professional career with Miami City Ballet as an apprentice and he went on to enjoy a career of 18 years also dancing for American Ballet Theatre Studio Company, Joffrey Ballet, Ballet West, Smuin Contemporary Ballet, Cincinnati Ballet, and appearing as guest artist with a few others. During this time, his repertoire included most of the classics and a vast number of ballets from the Balanchine repertoire, ranging from corps to principal roles. He also had the opportunity to perform ballets from Gerald Arpino, Robert Joffrey, Jiří Kylián, Kurt Joss, John Cranko, Frederick Ashton, Kenneth MacMillan, Twyla Tharp, Helen Picket, Nicolo Fonte, Antony Tudor, Ulysses Dove, Michael Smuin, Val Caniparoli, Alberto Alonso, Benjamin Millepied, Leonide Massine,
and Amy Seiwert. Throughout his career, Permuy feels blessed to have learned from figures like Nancy Raffa, Fernanado Bujones, Martha Bosh, Sir Anthony Dowell, Christopher Carr, Eddie Villella and Clinton Luckett. In 2021, he joined Cleveland Ballet as a director of repertoire, where he had the opportunity not only to perform ballet master duties but also was able to return to the stage as a character dancer, performing the roles of Don Quijote in the ballet by the same name and Drosselmeyer in The Nutcracker This is Permuy’s first season with Atlanta Ballet and he’s looking forward to bringing his experiences to the Company and to keep learning and growing under the direction of Gennadi Nedvigin and his team.
CLAUDIA SCHREIER (Choreographer-in-Residence) has choreographed, directed and produced for dance, opera and film across the U.S. and internationally. She has been commissioned by Boston Ballet, Miami City Ballet, Dance Theatre of Harlem, Vail Dance Festival, Juilliard Opera, ABT Studio Company and New York Choreographic Institute and will premiere new works for San Francisco Ballet and Richmond Ballet in 2023. Schreier has created three works for Atlanta Ballet: First Impulse, named a 2019 Standout Performance by Pointe Magazine; Pleiades Dances (2021); and Fauna (2022). In October 2022, in collaboration with the Cathedral Choir Society, Atlanta Ballet performed excerpts of Berlioz’s Roméo et Juliette at the Washington National Cathedral, choreographed by Schreier. In 2021, she released Force of Habit, a film commissioned by Guggenheim Works & Process and co-presented by Atlanta Ballet. She has contributed to programs at the White House, Jazz at Lincoln Center and the Kennedy Center, including the Kennedy Center Honors. Her work is the subject of two documentaries, including PBS’s Emmy Award-winning “Dancing on the Shoulders of Giants” (Capital Region). She is a recipient of the Princess Grace Award, Toulmin Fellowship at the Center for Ballet and the Arts at NYU, Lotos Prize, and Suzanne Farrell Dance Prize.
Chungju, South Korea
Jamestown, New York
Special thanks to Jordan’s Pas de Deux Society patrons, Elaine & Erroll Davis.
Sáo Paulo, Brazil
Madrid, Spain
Special thanks to Sergio’s Pas de Deux Society patron, Katherine Scott
Cali, Colombia
Special thanks to Miguel’s Pas de Deux Society patrons, Bonnie & Terry Herron
DENYS NEDAK
Odessa, Ukraine
Special thanks to Denys’ Pas de Deux Society patron, Frank Holt
CARRAIG NEW Juneau, Alaska
Highland, Michigan
Manila, Philippines
Special thanks to Mikaela’s Pas de Deux Society patron, Danna Sanders
Trinidad, Cuba
Santo Angelo, RS, Brazil
Special thanks to Anderson’s Pas de Deux Society patron, the Corps de Ballet
Yokohama, Japan
Special thanks to Fuki’s Pas de Deux Society patron, the Yee Family Charitable Fund
Naples, Florida
Shamong, New Jersey
Special
SPENCER
WETHERINGTON
Bridgeton, New Jersey
