Indianapolis City Ballet Announces New Master Classes

Franco De Vita Master Class

The Indianapolis City Ballet announces its second season of Master Classes today and revealed a prestigious roster of teachers that will give ballet technique classes in some of the Indianapolis dance schools. Classes begin in September throughout the city, including Carmel, Fishers, Indianapolis and Muncie. The classes are provided on an open enrollment basis. The cost for students is $25 per class or $10 for observers. Indianapolis City Ballet has provided funding to make these classes possible and affordable as they are unique opportunities for students and teachers alike to work with some of the premier teachers and artists in the world.

“We were thrilled with the reaction to our first round of Master Classes that concluded in June and we are anxious to introduce the new roster of teachers we’re bringing to Indianapolis,” shared Jane Fortune, Indianapolis City Ballet Vice Chairman. “I would like to thank all the schools, teachers, parents and students who have encouraged us to continue. I think that this program is yet another hallmark of excellence providing exciting, affirming and sometimes even life-changing interactions.”

This year’s Master Class Program starts with a line-up of some of today’s most exciting dancers from: Daniil Simkin and Gennadi Saveliev, both stars from American Ballet Theatre; Ethan Stiefel the Dean of the Dance Department at the North Carolina School of the Arts as well as Principal Dancer at ABT and star of several Hollywood dance films; the recently retired NY City Ballet Principal Darci Kistler, a teacher at the School of American Ballet who was Balanchine’s last muse; Tiler Peck, a young Principal Dancer with New York City Ballet featured in film and television; and Gillian Murphy, a Principal Dancer with ABT known for her flawless technique and artistry.

The program then shifts to include some of the finest teachers today with: George De La Pena, former dancer with the Joffrey Ballet and ABT, known for his role as Nijinsky in the film by the same name as well as for numerous Broadway roles; Tadeusz Matacz, the renowned head of the John Cranko School of the Stuttgart Ballet that is turning out some of the most exciting dancers in the world; Brooke Denoës, the founder of L’Académie Américaine de Danse de Paris, the largest American ballet school outside the United States; Franco De Vita, Principal at the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School of Dance at American Ballet Theatre, Mr. De Vita was one the developers of the ABT Curriculum, one that has combined some the finest aspects of the various dance styles under the supervision of medical experts; and Shelly Powers, who runs the Ben Stevenson Academy, the official school of the Houston Ballet.

The Master Classes are open classes though they are restricted to Intermediate and Advanced ballet students. “Just as in New York, London and St Petersburg, as open classes, with open enrollment to all students who consider themselves to be at the intermediate/advanced level, you will find a wide variety of abilities and talent. It is up to the individual teacher to determine the level of the class as a whole and to engage each dancer as best they can – different teachers have different ways of accomplishing this but the goal is to provide at least one small, but significant step in their development.” said Jolinda Menendez, the program’s artistic leader.

“We are pleased to be able to place these classes in some of the many dance schools in the area – a willingness to cooperate, an excitement to participate and a can-do attitude by the studio owners makes this possible but the scheduling issues are what take some time to negotiate,” said Elli Baker, Director of Marketing and the dance community’s direct link to ICB and its programs. “For the students, the reactions have been outstanding and I think that this program provides great opportunities for students and teachers alike.”

“The Indianapolis City Ballet’s Master Class program is a unique opportunity for many of these students to interact with some of the most renowned teachers, to test their capabilities and find the many similarities and some of the interesting differences between the teaching styles,” said ICB Chairman Robert Hesse. “It is an important program that allows us to provide sincere and dynamic added-value to the dance education community of Central Indiana while uniting the community. We are very proud of this program and it stands as a cornerstone of Indianapolis City Ballet’s mission to bring the best in ballet to Indianapolis.”

“These guest teachers are but some of the individuals who will not only enrich the fabric of the Indianapolis dance community but participate in the development of Indianapolis City Ballet’s Company,” said Kevin Hesse.

Class information and reservations are found on the Indianapolis City Ballet website at www.indianapoliscityballet.org.

Master Class Season 2010/2011:

Sunday, September 12, 2010 – Daniil Simkin
Soloist, American Ballet Theatre at Expressenz Dance Center (9850 N. Michigan Road, Suite A, Carmel, IN
www.expressenz.com)

Sunday, September 12, 2010 – Gennadi Saveliev
Soloist, American Ballet Theatre and Co-Found YAGP at Muncie Ballet Studio at Muncie Ballet Studio (520 E. Main St.,
Muncie, IN, www.muncieballet.org)

Sunday, October 10, 2010 – Ethan Stiefel
Principal Dancer, American Ballet Theater & Dean, North Carolina School of the Arts at Indy Dance Academy (9401 N.
Meridian St., Indianapolis, IN, www.indydanceacademy.com/)

Sunday, October 24, 2010 – Darci Kistler
Faculty, School of American Ballet at Indy Dance Academy (9401 N. Meridian St., Indianapolis, IN,
www.indydanceacademy.com)

Sunday, January 9, 2011 – Tiler Peck
Principal Dancer, New York City Ballet at Academy of Dance Arts (10080 East 121st St., #126, Fishers, IN,
www.adadancers.com)

Sunday, February 20, 2011 – Gillian Murphy
Principal Dancer, American Ballet Theatre at Central Indiana Academy of Dance (14950 Greyhound Ct, Ste 4, Carmel, IN,
www.ciaodance.com)

Sunday, March 6, 2011 – George de la Pena
Faculty, Iowa University (former Artistic Director of the Joffrey School) at The Academy of Gregory Hancock Dance
Theatre (329 Gradle Dr, Carmel, IN www.gregoryhancockdancetheatre.org/)

Thursday, March 24, 2011 – Tadeusz Matacz
Artistic Director, John Cranko School at the Stuttgart Ballet at Ballet Theatre of Carmel at Performer’s Edge (12955 Old
Meridian St, Carmel, IN www.performersedgedancetheatre.com)

Sunday, April 10, 2011 – Brooke Desnoës
Founder and Artistic Director, American Academy of Dance in Paris at Curtain Call Academy of Dance (1833 Expo Lane,
Indianapolis, IN, www.ccadance.com)

Sunday, May 15, 2011 – Franco De Vita
Principal, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at American Ballet Theatre at Ballet Theatre of Carmel at Performer’s
Edge (12955 Old Meridian St, Carmel, IN www.performersedgedancetheatre.com)

Sunday, June 12, 2011 – Shelly Powers
Associate Artistic Director, Ben Stevenson Academy at the Houston Ballet at The Dance Refinery (8335 Shelby Street,
Indianapolis, IN, www.thedancerefinery.com)

For more information and to make reservations to take class or to observe, please visit: www.IndianapolisCityBallet.org