Don & Patricia Cantwell, Artistic Directors
Jill Eathorne Bahr, Resident Choreographer
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Don & Patricia Cantwell, Artistic Directors
Jill Eathorne Bahr, Resident Choreographer
Tabitha Alessi was born and raised in New York. She trained at the Huntington Center for Performing Arts and attended many summer programs such as, The Rock School for Dance Education, NYSSSA and American Ballet Theatre. After graduating high school in 2007, she became a trainee with Atlanta Ballet. She has also danced with companies like Ballet Theatre of Maryland and Connecticut Ballet. While dancing with CBT she has performed Jill Barh's Fire Bird, A Midsummer Night's Dream and George Balanchine's "Who Cares". This is her third season with Charleston Ballet Theatre.
in her first year with the company, has been dancing since she was two and a half years old at her neighborhood dance studio in Jacksonville, Florida. She has spent summers training with The School of American Ballet, The Rock School, Joffery Ballet School, LINES Ballet, and American Ballet Theatre, all under scholarship. At the age of 16, Audrey auditioned for the high school ballet program at University of North Carolina School of the Arts, earning placement and a Dean’s Merit Scholarship from Dean and former ABT Principal Dancer Ethan Stiefel. Before graduating in 2012, she performed as Lead Spanish in Ethan Stiefel's The Nutcracker and Kitri in Don Quixote. She is beyond thrilled to be a part of a company that is "World Class at Every Turn!"
Jose Gonzales Amaya was born in Cali, Columbia where he danced with Ballet de
Cali and Ballet Contemporaneo de Caracas with princpal roles of Le Corsaire, Don Quixote, The Nutcracker and Carmen. He has been principal dancer with Ballet
Theresa Carreno and Tulsa Ballet dancing in Val Caniparoli, La Sylphide and
Western Symphony. Jose as worked with Christopher Fleming, Maria Eugenia
Barrios, Mario Galizzi and other notable choreographers. This is his second season
with Charleston Ballet Theatre.
Born in Los Angeles, CA, Mr. Barocio began his training in 1991. He has received scholarships to train at San Francisco Ballet, Boston Ballet, Houston Ballet, Los Angeles Classical Ballet, and American Ballet Theatre. He has also had the opportunity to have trained with some of the world’s best performers and teachers all across America. In 2004, David performed in Claremont-Ferrand, France, and since then he has performed in Europe, South America, and throughout the United States.
Bridget Halloran, in her sixth season at Charleston Ballet Theatre began her dance
training in her hometown of Jacksonville, FL with Jacksonville Ballet Theatre. She
has trained with Nutmeg Conservatory for the Arts, Atlanta Ballet and the Kirov
Academy. Professional credits include dancing with Northern Plains ballet and Twin Cities Metropolitan Ballet. Charleston Ballet Theatre credits include The Nutcracker, Zorro, Decadent Divas, Bolero, Serenade and Nashville.
Gwenyth Kelley was raised in Boston, Ma.She began her training with Jackie Cronsberg and Carter Alexander at Ballet Workshop of New England and went on to graduate from North Carolina School of the Arts. Studying at such summer programs as San Francisco Ballet School, American Ballet Theatre New York, Miami City Ballet Scool, Hungarian State Opera, and Ballet Austin. She then went on to dance with Ballet Austin as a trainee and apprentice. Thrilled to be starting her third season with Charleston Ballet Theatre, she has been delighted to have danced such works with the company as Jill Eathorne-Bahr's Wings, The Nutcracker, Firebird, and George Balanchine's Who Cares and Allegro Brilliante.
Alexey Kulpin, is a native of St. Petersburg, Russia and most recently danced at
the Grand Rapids Ballet in Michigan. He has performed internationally in France,
Israel, Germany, China, Poland and The Netherlands. He is the 1998 winner of the
‘Grand Prix’ of the ‘Muse of St. Petersburg’ ballet competition. He has danced with
the Kransoyarsk Dance Ensemble of Serbia, St. Petersburg Opera and San Diego Ballet. He teaches all level of ballet and begins his second season with CBT.
was born in New York City where she began her ballet training at the age of 5 with The Joffrey Ballet School. Her professional credits include The Joffrey Ballet, Grand Rapids Ballet, New Jersey Ballet and the Fort Wayne Ballet. She also danced in the film Center Stage. Since joining CBT, she has performed a broad variety of works, including lead roles in Don Quixote (Kitri), Alice in Wonderland (Alice), Blanche DuBois in Streecar Named Desire, Captured Angel and principal roles in George Balanchine’s Rubies, Serenade, and Who Cares?
James Peronto, in his sixth season with CBT, is a native of Madison, WI where he
trained under JoJean Retrum at the Monona Academy of Dance and then the
Houston Ballet Academy. Professional credits include Texas Ballet Theatre and
the Bruce Wood Dance Co. CBT credits include The Nutcracker, Zorro, Motown
Mania, Nine Lives, Twisted Tango, Rite of Spring, The Magical Mystery Tour and
Rubies.
Born and raised in Houston, Texas, Kate Simpson trained at Ballet Center of Houston under the direction of Gilbert Rome and Victoria Vittum. She has attended summer programs hosted by Joffrey Ballet, Boston Ballet, Atlanta Ballet, and Charleston Ballet Theatre. Before joining Charleston Ballet Theatre Kate danced as a Trainee with the Louisville Ballet performing corps de ballet roles in ballets such as Swan Lake, Giselle, Coppelia, and La Bayadere. Having danced as an apprentice during the 2011/2012 season Kate is excited to return for her second season with CBT as a company member.
is from Boca Raton, FL where she trained with The Boca Ballet
Theatre under the direction of Dan Guin, Jane Tyree and Dreyfoos School of the Arts Melissa has danced with the Dayton Ballet II. She has been a guest artist with Louisville Ballet and as a trainee with Nashville Ballet. This is Melissa's eigth season with The Charleston Ballet Theatre. CBT roles include Lead Russian and Arabian in the Nutcracker, Gypsy Lead in Don Quixote, Lady Capulet in Romeo and Juliet and the Matriarch in Rite Of Spring.
In her second season with Charleston Ballet Theatre, Crystal
began training in Gastonia, NC under Pat Wall at Gaston Dance Theatre. She continued her training at North Carolina School of the Arts, Atlanta Ballet, Joffrey Ballet and North Carolina Dance Theatre and holds a BFA in dance from East Carolina University, where she studied closely with Galina Panova. She has danced professionally with The Montgomery Ballet and Ballet Oklahoma
Shannon Yee,- Company Member a native of Chicago, spent her years training at the School of Ballet Chicago and also performed with the Ballet Chicago Studio Company under the direction of Patricia Blair and Daniel Duell. She has danced professionally for St. Louis Ballet, City Ballet of San Diego, Oklahoma City Ballet, Ballet Quad Cities, and Ohio Dance Theatre. Over the years her favorite ballets to perform have been George Balachine’s “Serenade” and “Concerto Barocco” and “Giselle” after Petipa. She is also a Licensed Massage Therapist.
Originally from Columbia, SC, Anna began her serious training at Columbia Ballet School under Anita Ashley. She continued her training at North Carolina School of the Arts, graduating in 2009 before becoming a trainee with the Louisville Ballet. During her two years in Kentucky, she got to learn and perform ballets such as Giselle, Swan Lake, and La Bayadere. Since joining CBT in 2011, she has performed in ballets such as Don Quixote, The Nutcracker, Poetry With a Splash of Red Blood, and Who Cares?.
Matthew McKinney began his dance training under the direction of Carlos Agudelo in Spartanburg, South Carolina and finished his primary training at the Virginia School of the Arts studying with Petrus Bosman and David Keener then went on to Butler University. Mr. McKinney began his professional career with Charleston Ballet Theatre where he danced for 8 years becoming known for his versatility and athleticism dancing principle roles in Romeo and Juliet, Camelot, and Jill Eathorne Bahr’s Rite of Spring among others. Matthew then went on to dance with Eugene Ballet/Ballet Idaho being
featured in Toni Pimble’s Silk and Steel and Red Pony as well as being on faculty at the Eugene Ballet Academy where he taught the advanced levels ballet, men’s technique and partnering. He has also completed training courses in the Dance for PD program
Born in Orlando, Florida, Anne Sandefur trained with Fernando Bujones, Yan Chen, and Peter Stark at the Orlando Ballet School and was a trainee with the Orlando Ballet Theatre. She has attended summer programs with the Kirov Academy of Ballet, Julliard, American Ballet Theatre in NYC, and the Boston Ballet. In 2005 she placed as a top 30 senior finalist in the Youth America Grand Prix ballet competition and performed her contemporary solo in the competition's "Stars of Today Meet the Stars of Tomorrow" gala performance at New York City's City Center. In 2006 she placed as a NYC top 12 finalist in the senior division of the Youth American Grand Prix competition. Anne graduated from Duke University with a BA degree in Psychology and Dance. Also, she is currently a student at the Charleston School of Law.
Photos taken
April 2007- June 30, 2012
by Scott Nilsson
should be credited
© Keiko Guest Photography; Scott Nilsson, Photographer