Houston, Texas – Houston
Ballet Corps de Ballet Dancer Joseph Walsh has been awarded a
prestigious Princess Grace Award by the Princess Grace Foundation-USA.
Mr. Walsh will travel to New York City for the glittering Princess
Grace Awards gala on October 21, hosted by HSH Prince Albert II of
Monaco.
National in scope, the Princess Grace Foundation-USA is
dedicated to identifying and assisting emerging talent in theater,
dance, and film by awarding grants in the form of scholarships,
apprenticeships and fellowships.
Mr. Walsh joins a small group of five former Houston Ballet dancers
who have won a Princess Grace Award. Previous Houston Ballet winners
include Yin Le (1998), Carlos Acosta (1995), Tiekka Schofield (1988),
Li Cunxin (1986) and Martha Butler (1984).
Originally from Pennsylvania, Joseph Walsh trained at Walnut Hill
School for the Performing Arts, American Ballet Theatre and Houston
Ballet’s Ben Stevenson Academy. Mr. Walsh was a member of Houston
Ballet II prior to joining the professional company in 2007.
Since then, Mr. Walsh has been featured in a variety of roles, both
contemporary and classical, including Lensky in John Cranko’s Onegin,
Hans van Manen’s Solo, Gopak in Ben Stevenson’s The Nutcracker, Charles
d’Artoise in Stanton Welch’s Marie, first pas de deux in Antony Tudor’s
The Leaves are Fading, William Forsythe’s The Vertiginous Thrill of
Exactitude, Jiri Kylian’s Soldiers’ Mass and the first and seventh pas
de deux in Stanton Welch’s Nosotros. Joseph Walsh will also perform a
leading role in the company’s upcoming production of Manon.
Booker T Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts students and faculty have been quite busy the last few months. read about their travels and accomplishments by clicking here.
Dianne Cole Johnson's Divas showing at Starbound Nationals in Lake Tahoe:
Mini Divas: "Minuit"
- High Gold, "Bump in the Night" - High Gold, 1st Overall Petite
Groups; invited to be in Showcase with the Jr. groups - came in 9th
Overall out of 600 jr. groups!!!!
Junior Divas: "Acceleration Waltz" - High Gold; Special Judges Award - Beautiful Bourees, "Never Underestimate a Girl" - High Gold
Big Divas:
"Shoeless Joe" - High Gold; Choreography Award; 1st Overall Jr. Groups;
invited to be in Showcase - 1st Overall National Champions! "Violin
Concerto" - High Gold; 2nd Overall Teen Groups, "Phantom" - High Gold,
1st Overall Teen Groups; Showcase, "Colorblind" - High Gold, 2nd
Overall Senior Groups; Showcase, "Over You" - High Gold, 6th Overall
Senior Groups; Special Judges Award - Gorgeous Jetes
All Divas: "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" - High Gold, 2nd overall Production Numbers (missed first by one point!); Showcase
Sols/Duets/Titles: "Sleeping Beauty Variation" - Brenna/Jessica pointe
duet - High Gold, Special Judges Award - Excellent Technical
Control;1st Overall Senior Duet/Trios
"Miss Petite Starbound" - Paige Hill for "My Favorite Things"; Best Jr. Costume Award
"Miss Teen Starbound" - Jessica Powell for "Music of the Night"; Best Sr. Costume Award
"Show Off" - Maddie McPherson, High Gold
"Back to the Start" - Baylee Hodson, High Gold; Special Judges Award - Lovely Port de bras
"Evening Waltz" - Sami Spidell, High Gold
"Crash Course" - Jessica Powell, High Gold; Special Judges Award - Terrific Technique; 2nd Overall Senior Solos
"Imagine" - Jessica Powell, High Gold; 1st Overall Senior Solos
"The Parasol" - REagan/Baylee duet; High Gold, Special Judges Award -
Lovely Pas de chat; 2nd overall Jr. Duets (missed first by one point)
New Face of Starbound - Jessica Powell
Congratulations to All!
According to Trudeau on Shreveport, the boutique arts blog with a bell-curtained doorway:
Alexis Jackson dances on Dallas stages as Gregory Hines Scholarship
winner;
tonight dances before A Chorus Line at Music Hall
Alexis Jackson is the 2009 Gregory Hines Scholarship recipient given by the Dallas Dance Council, writes Carol Anglin. "She
is in Dallas for the month of July where she has been on full
scholarship at Dallas Black Dance Theatre (2 weeks) and Dallas Summer
Musicals Academy (3 weeks) with a culminating performance of Broadway
hits at the Majestic Theatre," continues Anglin. "Tonight (July
9) the touring Broadway hit, A Chorus Line, opens at the Music Hall.
Alexis and other scholarship recipients will perform in front of the
Music Hall on an outdoor stage at 7:00 pm. Hope some of you can make
the performance. Alexis will perform 'Never Give Up' by Dianne
Maroney-Grigsby. (Modern Dance, not tap!)
Congratulations, Alexis!"
Fresh off a 16 performance run of DSM's Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, sisters Bette Lou and Bailey Dove move on to their next big adventure.
The sisters, both ballet dancers who have performed in Moscow Ballet's Great Russian Nutcracker in
Dallas, were especially happy to be cast together after having a big
discussion before the audition about how each needed to have a good
attitude if just one or neither got a part.
Bette Lou: "I was really, really excited because I thought we would have a lot of fun together."
Bailey: "I
was surprised because there were a lot of good singers and dancers at
the audition. I'm really happy because it will look good on college
applications."
 
WFAA Entertainment reporter Gary Cogill recently interviewed Texas Ballet Theater's own Lonnie Weeks
about his amazing experience in winning the Silver Medal in the Junior
Division at the prestigious International Ballet Competition in
Helsinki, Finland. Over 70 dancers from 25 countries including Russia,
China, France, Japan, Germany, Korea, South Africa and the United
States were invited to participate in the competition. The
International Ballet Competition is the "Olympics" of ballet and tours
annually to: Helsinki, Finland; Varna, Bulgaria; Moscow, Russia; and
Jackson, Mississippi. (Mikhail Baryshnikov won the Gold Medal in the
Junior Division at the Varna International Ballet Competition in 1966).
Barring any breaking news developments, the interview will air on
Monday, July 20 during the 5:00pm news broadcast on WFAA-TV, channel 8
(the local ABC affiliate). Set your DVRs! to watch his competition
performance, click on this link www.youtube.com/TBTballet
Ashley Fourcand
is choreographing the musical Evita for Repertory
Company Theater in Richardson. She is a recent graduate of the
University of Texas at Dallas with a BA in Art and Performance and a
three year recipient of the Bryce and Jonelle Jordan Scholarship for
dance. Ashley will be attending the dual MA/MBA Arts and Administration
program at SMU in the fall. Congrats, Ashley on all your
accomplishments!
Congratulations to past and present DC Scholarship recipients
Mikelle Rindflish, Lauran Spencer, Ryan Vancompernolle and Chloe Watson — 2009 BTWHSPVA Distinguished Program graduates.
 
Steven Loch, 2008 recipient of the George Skibine Memorial Scholarship, LakeCities
Ballet Theatre member and Ballet Conservatory student, was accepted to
compete at the IBC in Helsinki, Finland as a Junior competitor on June
1-11, 2009. Steven received scholarships and will be attending Jacob\'s
Pillow Dance Festival as well the summer and full year program at
Pacific Northwest Ballet under the direction of Peter Boal.
Holly Williams, associate
professor and senior associate chair of the Department of Theatre and
Dance, has been appointed interim chair of the department, effective
June 1... As a dancer, Williams preformed nationally and
internationally with the companies of Mark Morris, Laura Dean and Jose
Limon. Her choreography has been staged for companies across the United
States, and her work for the Houston Grand Opera, Dallas Opera, Austin
Lyric Opera and Dallas Theater Center has won national acclaim.
Congratulations!!! Current and previous DC scholarship recipients Caitlyn Johansen and Lauren Kravitz for their recent induction to the National Honor Society.
 DC's new ED's daughter, Alysha Deslorieux is
featured in the May issue of Dance's article "Triple-Threat Training".
Alysha (on the left / white skirt), is a freshman at the College-
Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati.
2009 Gene, Louise & Fred Scholarship recipient Terron McCullough has
been selected for membership in the Permenter Middle School Chapter of
the National Honor Society based on careful consideration of
scholarship, leadership, service, citizenship and character by the
Faculty Council. Way to go, Terron!
Congratulations!!! Dallas Chapter - NAACP 2009 ACT-SO Gold Winner
Dancer Nile Jones of BTWHSFPVA.
Local NAACP chapters hold local programs across the country for
students in grades 9-12 in 25 categories. The gold medal winner on the
local level qualifies for an all expense paid trip to compete with
other winners from other cities at the National Competition, which will
be held in New York City during the NAACP Annual Convention in July. BEST OF LUCK IN THE NEXT ROUND
Ballet Ensemble of Texas received the “Stream Award” at the Regional Dance America/ Southwest Festival in
Houston earlier this month. The annual award,
selected by committee in recognition of the one company within the
organization who displayed the highest artistic excellence and the
greatest service to the Regional Dance America/ Southwest in the past
year. Ballet
Ensemble of Texas members also received other awards at the Festival in
Houston. Company choreographer Jenny Johnston received the RDA
National Commissioning Award for her choreography of “La Nuit Rose”,
which the Ensemble performed at the Gala Performance of the Festival,
and which is pictured here. Also two of the company’s dancers received
scholarships: Madilyn Hill (16) received a full scholarship to attend
the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School’s Summer Intensive, and Brittney
Dito (15) received a $500.00 Regional Dance America scholarship to
attend the Joffrey Midwest Summer Intensive.
 
Brittney Dito Madilyn Hill
La Nuit Rose by Jenny Johnston photos by Cathy Vanover
According to Next Step Magazine, Lauran Spencer is a 2009 Texas Super Teen:
Lauran Spencer of Booker T. Washington HSPVA in Grand Prairie is an
all-around great student. While maintaining a GPA of 3.97, she has been
involved in student organizations, works at a local dance studio and
participates in community service. She has also created a ministry that
reaches out to children of abusive parents. Through this ministry, she
provides free dance instruction to children temporarily housed in a
rescue home. Lauran, who is ranked sixth in her class, plans to attend
college to study dance and choreography.
CONGRATULATIONS TO AREA STUDENTS WHO PLACED AT THE
YOUTH AMERICA GRAND PRIX REGIONALS, IRVING ARTS CENTER FEBRUARY 6-7
SENIOR AGE DIVISION
CLASSICAL BALLET CATEGORY
1st Place Steven Loch, 17, Ballet Conservatory, TX
2nd Place Brittney Dito, 15, Ballet Academy of Texas, TX
3rd Place Kaya Aman, 16, Independent, FL
TOP 12
Kaya Aman, 16, Independent, FL
Brittney Dito, 15, Ballet Academy of Texas, TX
Steven Loch, 17, Ballet Conservatory, TX
Tessa Moore, 15, Ballet Center of Fort Worth, TX
Veronica Phillips, 17, Texas Ballet Theatre School,
Sally Schweitzer, 15, Ballet Conservatory, TX
Sara Elizabeth Stockman, 18, Independent, TX
CONTEMPORARY BALLET CATEGORY
1st Place Steven Loch, 17, Ballet Conservatory, TX
2nd Place Kaya Aman, 16, Independent, FL
TOP 12
Kaya Aman, 16, Independent, FL
Emily Brideau, 17, Ballet Academy of Texas, TX
Brittney Dito, 15, Ballet Academy of Texas, TX
Steven Loch, 17, Ballet Conservatory, TX
Mason McCollough, 16, Ballet Center of Fort Worth,
Tessa Moore, 17, Ballet Center of Fort Worth, TX
Veronica Phillips, 17, Texas Ballet Theatre School,
Sally Schweitzer, 15, Ballet Conservatory, TX
Sara Elizabeth Stockman, 18, Independent, TX
JUNIOR AGE DIVISION
CLASSICAL BALLET CATEGORY
1st Place Katia Almayeva, 12, Marina Almanyeva School of Classical Ballet, TX
2nd Place Katie Cheng, 12, Ballet Academy of Texas, TX
3rd Place Julia Nicholson, 12, Ballet Academy of Texas, TX
Katia Almayeva, 12, Marina Almanyeva School of Classical Ballet, TX
Tiffany Byrd, 14, Texas Ballet Theatre School, TX
Katie Cheng, 12, Ballet Academy of Texas, TX
Grace Cuny, 13, Metropolitan Ballet Academy, TX
Kendall Galey, 12, Ballet Conservatory, TX
Courtlyn Hanson, 12, Ballet Academy of Texas, TX
Julia Nicholson, 12, Ballet Academy of Texas, TX
Hannah Snowden, 13, Ballet Academy of Texas, TX
CONTEMPORARY BALLET CATEGORY
TOP 12
Katia Almayeva, 12, Marina Almayeva School of Classical Ballet, TX
Alyssa Aman, 14, Ballet Academy of Texas, TX
Tiffany Byrd, 14, Texas Balet Theatre School, TX
Abbie Feller, 14, Ballet Academy of Texas, TX
Julia Nicholson, 12, Ballet Academy of Texas, TX
PRE-COMPETITIVE AGE DIVISION
2nd Place Anastasia Tillman, 9, Marina Almayeva School of Classical Ballet, TX
TOP 12
Hana Alford, 10, Marina Almayeva School of Classical Ballet, TX
Gillian Fitz, 10, Marina Almayeva School of Classical Ballet, TX
Sabrina Strain, 11, Ballet Center of Fort Worth, TX
Anastasia Tillman, 9, Marina Almayeva School of Classical Ballet, TX
ENSEMBLES
1st Place Texas Ballet Theatre School, TX SCHUBERT
3rd Place (tie) Ballet Conservatory, TX Here and Beyond
3rd Place (tie) Ballet Conservatory, TX Here and Beyond
SPECIAL AWARDS
OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHER AWARD Victor Kabaniaev & Lynsey Steel
OUTSTANDING TEACHER AWARD Marina Almayeva
OUTSTANDING SCHOOL AWARD Ballet Conservatory, TX
Yourself Inc. will present 2009 Silent Hero Awards to
six community leaders who offer help and inspiration to others at a
luncheon on February 13. The honorees include Liz Gallego. To quote
Robert Miller, The Dallas Morning News columnist, "Liz Gallego, who is
dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in dance and fine arts and is
volunteer art director for DCET's Folkloric Arts Monitoring Amigos."
Liz received the 2008 DC's Curtain Call Teacher Scholarship. DCET is
the acronym for Debes Creer En Ti, which is Spanish for Believe in
Yourself. Congratulations to Liz Gallego!
May 10, 2009, Margo Dean School of Ballet will celebrate 60 years of teaching ballet in
two performances at Will Rogers Auditorium. Congratulations!
photo by Sharen Bradford
Congratulations to former Dance Council Scholarship recipient Christopher Vo, selected by Dance Magazine as: one of the "25 to watch who will shine in '09".
Joe Cutaia and Ann Briggs-Cutaia
(the Chaplin Cotillions) were at the last Monday taping of this
season's "Dancing with the Stars." They had seen an ad for a "Dancing
with the Stars" contest hosted by ABC and WFAA so they created and
submitted a video. They won along with nineteen other couples from
around the country. Joe and Ann were flown to Los Angeles and stayed at
the Beverly Wilshire. At the studio on that
Monday, Joe and Ann watched the performances of Alicia Keyes and Miley
Cyrus being taped for broadcast on Tuesday. During one of the
commercial breaks the "warm up guy" asked several people sitting behind
the judges,"Will you dance for a t-shirt?". No takers. Joe called out,
"I will," and went down to the stage. When asked what he would do, Joe
said that he wanted his wife to dance with him. As Ann moved to join
him she was standing by Doris Roberts. Joe was asked what kind of music
he wanted. When he asked for swing music, the orchestra started playing
"Tea for Two." Ann said that they started with a soft shoe and then
went into a swing. At one point when the music paused Joe scooted back
as Ann hit a pose and Bruno Toniolo let out a "ooooh"! Then the music
got faster and faster. At the end of their performance, Judge Len
Goodman held up his paddle with the 10 on it and told Joe and Ann,"I
really enjoyed your dance."
Later when they were in the parking lot, a car had one of those orange
cones stuck to the wheel. Joe rushed over to help pull it off. Florence
Henderson rolled down the window and told them how much she enjoyed
their dance. Joe reminded her that they had met before in the 1980's
when Joe was touring with Ken Berry in George M. In St. Louis Florence
had a show that was to follow the George M run. She said that she
remembered meeting the cast and mentioned that that was a long time ago!
Joe and Ann were the only couple that were invited to dance in front of the judges and audience. Sadly they were not taped.
Congratulations to Dance Council Scholarship Recipient 2008, Meghan Fluker, for
being selected as an NFAA YoungArts Finalist in Jazz. Meghan will spend
a week in Florida with master classes all week, concerts every night
and a final gala on Jan 18 in Miami, all expenses paid, and with a
possible president's scholarship of $100 to $10,000. Meghan is the
recipient of the 2008 Tom Adams Scholarship.
Congratulations to Olivia Rehrman, also selected as a Finalist
in YoungArts. She will be attending an all expense paid week long event
in Miami in January 2009. There will be master classes of which in the
past have been taught by the likes of Mikhail Baryshnikov.
She will be eligible for cash awards up to $10,000 and the opportunity
to be nominated by the National Foundation of Advancement in the Arts
for Presidential Scholar which holds the possibility of performing in
Washington, D.C. Olivia is the recipient of the 2008 Charles Andrew Kulp Scholarship.
Also, congratulations to Booker T Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts YoungArts finalists: Jenniffer Criss and Frederick Thomas (West African Dance); Olivia Harris (Musical Theater)
honorable mention: Mariah Beaver, Aasia Bullock, Yossarin Gentry, Nile Jones, Zakiyyah Willis (West African Dance)
merit awards: Harry Feril, Ryan VanCompernolle (Jazz)
2008 DC scholarship recipient Brittney Dito and 2006 recipient Tye Love are featured in Joffrey Midwest's 2009 summer intensive brochure! Photo by Chuck Johnson.
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