Los Angeles Ballet (LAB) is a

classical ballet Classical ballet is any of the traditional, formal styles of ballet that exclusively employ classical ballet technique. It is known for its aesthetics and rigorous technique (such as pointe work, turnout of the legs, and high extensions), it ...

company based in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

. While rehearsals take place at the Los Angeles Ballet Center, the company tours venues across

LA County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is the ...

, such as the Dolby Theatre and

Royce Hall Royce Hall is a building on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Designed by the Los Angeles firm of Allison & Allison (James Edward Allison, 1870–1955, and his brother David Clark Allison, 1881–1962) and completed ...

, during its performances. LAB typically hosts two classical ballets each season, with an additional Balanchine performance in the spring. The company was founded and is co-directed by husband-and-wife team Thordal Christensen and Colleen Neary. The company debuted December 2006 with an original performance of ''

The Nutcracker ''The Nutcracker'' ( rus, Щелкунчик, Shchelkunchik, links=no ) is an 1892 two-act ballet (""; russian: балет-феерия, link=no, ), originally choreographed by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov with a score by Pyotr Ilyich Tchai ...

.''

History

The original Los Angeles Ballet was founded in 1974 under the direction of John Clifford a former principal dancer with New York City Ballet. Eleven years later, in 1985, financial difficulties forced Clifford's company to close. Two decades later, in 2004, a new Los Angeles Ballet was established by Co-Artistic Directors Thordal Christensen and Colleen Neary. The company debuted in December 2006, with an original production of ''The Nutcracker'', choreographed by Christensen and Neary, featuring costumes commissioned by Christensen the

Royal Danish Ballet The Royal Danish Ballet is an internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Danish Theatre in Kongens Nytorv, Copenhagen, Denmark. It is one of the oldest ballet companies in the world and originates from 1748, when the R ...

and a Southern California-themed set designed by Catherine Kanner. LAB continues to host performances of ''The Nutcracker'' annually. In 2009, LAB presented Bournonville's ''

La Sylphide ''La Sylphide'' ( en, The Sylph; da, Sylfiden) is a romantic ballet in two acts. There were two versions of the ballet; the original choreographed by Filippo Taglioni in 1832, and a second version choreographed by August Bournonville in 1836. ...

'', its first full-length classical story ballet after ''The Nutcracker''. At the end of nine seasons it presented 28 productions encompassing 50 works, including 15 commissioned world premieres. In addition to its repertoire of well-known classical ballets, Los Angeles Ballet has also commissioned 15 new works, one developed out of LAB's Choreographic Workshop, whose purpose of the workshop is to identify and nurture Southern Californian choreographic talent. In 2017, Los Angeles Ballet Orchestra, under the direction of internationally renowned conductor Andrea Quinn debuted with ''The Nutcracker'' at the Dolby Theatre.

Artistic staff

Artistic directors

Thordal Christensen and his wife, Colleen Neary, are founding directors of the ballet. Christensen was a former

principal dancer A principal dancer (often shortened to principal) is a dancer at the highest rank within a professional dance company, particularly a ballet company. A principal may be male or female. The position is similar to that of '' soloist''; however, p ...

for and artistic director of the

, with Neary appointed as the ‘first ballet mistress’ in charge of their productions. Neary was a principal dancer with Pacific Northwest Ballet and a Soloist with

New York City Ballet New York City Ballet (NYCB) is a ballet company founded in 1948 by choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein. Balanchine and Jerome Robbins are considered the founding choreographers of the company. Léon Barzin was the company' ...

under George Balanchine, and is currently a repetiteur for The George Balanchine Trust.

Lighting and design

Tyler Lambert Perkins operates as the company's lighting director for performances. Catherine Kanner manages design, promotion, and marketing for the company, handling art direction and sets each season.

Dancers

The company commenced with 21 dancers, later the company has ranged from 21 to 37 dancers each year. LAB holds auditions in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

, LA, and

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. If selected, company members are offered 25-week contracts.

Principals

Petra Conti Petra Conti (born 1988) is an Italian ballet dancer. She is a principal dancer with Los Angeles Ballet. Conti was previously a principal dancer with the Boston Ballet. Before moving to the United States, Conti danced as a principal with La Scal ...

* Tigran Sargsyan * Kenta Shimizu * Akimitsu Yahata

Soloists

* Laura Chachich * Magnus Christoffersen * Jasmine Perry

Company

* McKenzie Byrne * Cassidy Cocke * Brigitte Edwards * Lilly Fife * Kate Inoue * Hannah Keene * Julianne Kinasiewicz * Tate Lee * Cassidy McAndrew * Leah McCall * Madeline McMillin * Mackenzie Moser * Clay Murray * Dave Naquin * Santiago Paniagua * Cesar Ramirez * Marcos Ramirez * Brittany Rand * Joshua Schwartz * Linnea Swarting * Ryo Araki

Former members

Former dancers

Melissa Barak Melissa Barak (born August 9, 1979 in Los AngelesState of California. ''California Birth Index, 1905–1995'' (Sacramento, CA: State of California Department of Health Services, Center for Health Statistics).) is a choreographer and ballerina. S ...

* Lana Condor * Craig Hall * Bianca Bulle * Eris Nezha * Chelsea Page Johnston * Shintaro Akana * Joshua Brown * Abby Callahan * Brittany Cavaco * Alyssa Harrington * Jay Markov * SarahAnne Perel * Carolynn Rowland * Cleo Taneja

Repertoire

LAB's repertoire focuses on various works and styles; including Balanchine masterpieces staged by Neary, Bournonville ballets as imparted by Christensen, and classical ballets, such as including '' Giselle'', '' Swan Lake'', ''

Don Quixote is a Spanish epic novel by Miguel de Cervantes. Originally published in two parts, in 1605 and 1615, its full title is ''The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha'' or, in Spanish, (changing in Part 2 to ). A founding work of West ...

'', '' Romeo and Juliet'', and '' The Sleeping Beauty''. As a répétiteur for The George Balanchine Trust, Neary is one of the rarified few charged with carrying on the Balanchine legacy.

School and programs

The Ballet has an associated training academy, the Los Angeles Ballet School, serving pupils from beginner to pre-professional programs. Starting from the foundation of the LAB, it has developed multiple

charity Charity may refer to: Giving * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing * C ...

and arts programs. The “Power of Performance” program provides free tickets to disadvantaged children, seniors, veterans, and their families. The LAB also sponsors ‘A Chance to Dance Community Day’ event launched in October 2012. Being an all ages event, the public is encouraged to participate in free ballet, hip-hop, Yoga, Pilates and various other dance/fitness classes. The program intakes roughly 200 participants every year. The school runs a Choreographic Workshop, to identify Southern California choreographic talent.

Los Angeles Ballet Center

Located on the Westside of Los Angeles, the LA Ballet Center encompasses the Los Angeles Ballet and the Los Angeles Ballet School. The center spans 12,000 square feet incorporating three studios.

References

External links

Los Angeles Ballet website
{{authority control Ballet companies in the United States 2006 establishments in California Culture of Los Angeles Performing groups established in 2006 Dance in California