Artistic Directors ANA CLAIRE is the Director of the Boulder Ballet School, which has more than tripled in size under her direction. Although born in Boulder, Ana grew up on a ranch near Fairplay, Colorado. At the age of eight she saw American Ballet Theatre perform Swan Lake and fell in love with the art of ballet. In an extraordinary gift of support, Ana’s mother then drove her to ballet classes in Denver throughout her childhood. Ana has studied ballet with Maxine Williamson, Fernando Schaffenberg, Milenko Banovich, Barbara Demaree, and Larry Boyette. She has performed with Fort Worth Ballet, Fort Worth Opera, David Taylor Dance Theater, Aladdin Theater, Boulder’s Dinner Theatre, Jan Justis Dance Company, and 3rd Law Dance/ Theater, among others. Ana was a principal ballerina with Boulder Ballet for many years, and was twice voted “Boulder’s Best” by the Daily Camera. For 21 years she has produced, directed, and choreographed an annual Storybook Ballet, each with original music, scenery, and costumes created in collaboration with local artists, and co-choreographed the 1998, ‘99, and all productions since 2001 of Boulder Ballet’s Nutcracker. Ana originated Boulder Ballet’s acclaimed outreach program Steps in Time which has been performed at numerous schools throughout the Boulder/ Denver area. Ana studied dance pedagogy at Texas Christian University, attended the teacher training workshop with former New York City Ballet principal Jillana, and has over 27 years of teaching experience. She is a passionate teacher, dedicated to helping students achieve technical excellence while nurturing their individual artistry, and many of her students have gone on to professional careers in dance. PETER DAVISON brings 38 years of diverse performing experience to his role as Co-Artistic Director of Boulder Ballet. His childhood idols were Alexander Calder and Batman, influences that led to training in visual art, juggling, and dance. While a teenager, Peter began his professional career street performing in Los Angeles, and as a variety artist for Hollywood films, such as Xanadu with Olivia Newton-John and Gene Kelly. He moved to Boulder in 1980. Peter studied ballet with Larry Boyette, Ana Claire, Barbara Demaree, Finis Jhung and Donald Mahler; modern dance with Danelle Helander, and tap with Susan Hadley and Lynn Dally, among others. In 1982 Peter became a founding member of the juggling and dance trio Airjazz with whom he appeared at venues such as the Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, New Zealand International Festival of the Arts, BAM, and the Hong Kong Arts Festival. Peter has also been a member of David Taylor Dance Theater, Jan Justis Dance Company, Kim Robards Dance, 3rd Law Dance/Theater, and performed principal roles with Boulder Ballet from 1987 to 2000. He has toured his solo work throughout the U.S. and to Canada, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, Netherlands and Spain, and has appeared as a featured soloist on the CBS, BBC and Fox television networks. Peter has received numerous awards and grants including the Arts Innovation Award from the Colorado Federation of the Arts, and the Performance Fellowship from the Colorado Council on the Arts. Peter has choreographed works for several Colorado-based dance companies and schools. In 2009, excerpts from his Cirque D’Amour were performed by Boulder Ballet in New York City following his receipt of the Ballet Builders Award for New Choreography.
Boulder Ballet | Boulder Philharmonic Orchestra 2013-2014 Nutcracker
Program 5