Dance Company 2011

	Stephen Gabriel - Ballet Master Stephen began his training with Michael Simms of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet during which time he earned his B.F.A. from Stephens College. Professional credits include the Richmond Ballet, Kansas City Ballet, Ballet Omaha, and as principal dancer for Orlando's Ballet Theatre, dancing lead roles in many of the classics as well as works by Lambros Lambrou, Mauricio Wainrot, Lew Christensen and Christopher Fleming. Stephen has also performed for renowned modern choreographers Doug Varone, Peter Pucci, and Mark Taylor. CBT principal roles include Zorro, Firebird, Peter Pan, Carmina Burana, Midsummer Night's Dream, Rocky Horror, Bolero, and Who Cares?.
	Jose Edwin Gonzalez Amaya Jose Edwin Gonzalez Amaya was born in Cali, Colombia, where he started his ballet studies at the age of eight at INCOLBALLET and danced with the Ballet de Cali where he performed several roles from the classical and modern repertoire. With Ballet Contemporaneo de Caracas he danced the principal roles of Le Corsaire, Don Quixote, The Nutcracker, Midsummer Night´s Dream, Carmina Burana, Play, Carmen and others. He danced as a principal dancer with Ballet Teresa Carreño and as a guest artist in Ballet Concierto de Puerto Rico and joined Tulsa ballet where he danced Lambarena from Val Caniparoli, The Sleeping Beauty, La Sylphide and Western Symphony. Jose has worked with notable dance choreographers including Maria Eugenia Barrios, Mario Galizzi, Jimmy Gamonet, Maiqui Mañosa, Christopher Fleming, Rodney Gustafson, and others. He joined State Street Ballet as a principal guest artist in 2009 dancing the leading roles in Cinderella, Love Love, Midsummer Night´s Dream and The Jungle Book and joined the cast of Neos Dance Theatre in 2010. This is his first season with Charleston Ballet Theatre.
	Alexander Collen currently in his sixth season with CBT, is just loving where ballet has taken him: from small corridors in old buildings, to grand international stages and everywhere in between. In his first three seasons with CBT, Alex was featured as Lust in Seven Deadly Sins, Cpt. Hook in Peter Pan, and the male lead in Jill Eathorne Bahr’s Rite of Spring and Carmen, as well as dancing in Twisted Tango, The Magical Mystery Tour, The Ellington Experience, Motown Mania & Balanchine’s Rubies.
	Andrea De Vries Andrea currently in her eleventh season with CBT, is a Charleston native who has been dancing for twenty years. Professional credits include Charlotte City Ballet, North Carolina School of the Arts, and Florida's Summer Dance Festival, David Taylor Dance Theatre and the Colorado Ballet. CBT credits include Twisted Tango, Baker’s Dozen, Lark Ascending, Sleeping Beauty, Rite of Spring,The Ellington Experience, Motown Mania and Poetry with A Splash of Red Blood.
	Ezlimar Dortolina Ezlimar started her ballet studies in the Classical Ballet School in Venezuela. She became an apprentice with the Classical Ballet of Camara at the age of 13 and studied at Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington, D.C. and the Ecole Superieure de Danse Rosella Hightower in Cannes, France. She has worked as a soloist in Ballet Clasico de Camara, Ballet Teresa Carreño, Ballet Contemporaneo de Caracas, and was a member of Tulsa Ballet. As a guest artist she performed with Ballet Concierto de Puerto Rico(Don Quixote), Olympic Ballet Theatre (Sugar Plum fairy in The Nutcracker) and others. She joined the cast of the Colombian Classical Ballet as principal dancer and has danced the leading roles of Esmeralda, Le Corsaire, Gran Pas Classique, Paquita, Les Sylphides, Coppelia, Midsummer Night´s Dream, Carmina Burana, LaTraviata, Nous Sommes, among others. She has worked with notable choreographers such as Maria Eugenia Barrios, Mario Galizzi, James Urbain, Christopher Fleming, Juan Carlos Peñuela and others. Ezlimar joined State Street Ballet as a principal dancer for the 2009/2010 Season, dancing in Cinderella, The Nutcracker, Love Love and Midsummer Night´s Dream. This marks her first season with Charleston Ballet Theatre.
	Bridget Halloran in her sixth season with the company, began her serious dance training in her hometown of Jacksonville, FL with the Jacksonville Ballet Theatre. She spent her summers at the Nutmeg Conservatory for the Arts, Atlanta Ballet, and the Kirov Academy, and her professional credits include Northern Plains Ballet and Twin Cities Metropolitan Ballet. At CBT, Bridget has appeared in Zorro, Bolero, Decadent Divas, Magical Mystery Tour, Nashville and Serenade.
	Gwenyth Kelley Gwenyth Kelley, hailing from Boston, MA, trained at such summer programs as ABT New York, San Francisco Ballet School, Miami City Ballet School Ballet Austin, and attended University of North Carolina School of the Arts for four years. Upon graduation she became a trainee for 2 years before being offered an apprenticeship with Ballet Austin. Gwenyth joined Charleston Ballet Theatre for the 2010/2011 season and continues this year with her second season. She has danced in The Ellington Experience, The Nutcracker and Wings.
	Alexey Kulpin Alexey is originally from St. Petersburg, Russia and is a graduate of the University of Arts and Culture with certification as a ballet teacher and choreographer. He most recently danced at the Grand Rapids Ballet in Michigan. He has performed internationally in France, Finland, Germany, Israel, Poland, China, and The Netherlands. In 1998 he as award 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 Ballet Conservatory, Ballet Israel and San Diego Ballet among others. He enjoys working with children and teaches all level of young dancers as well as judging dance competitions, teaching company classses and private lessons. This marks Alexey's first season with Charleston Ballet Theatre.
	Jessica Wells Originally from Monongah, WV, Jessica graduated from West Virginia University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering and a minor in math and dance. Initially, she began her training at Movements in Dance in Fairmont, WV, but in college she danced for WVU’s dance company. She also attended summer programs at Pointe Park College and the International Vagonava School with Mansur Kamaletdinov, and upon graduation she danced for Manassas Ballet Theater. She is now in her fourth season with CBT. Her CBT credits include Balanchine’s Serenade, The Ellington Experience, Decadent Divas, The Nutcracker and Zorro.
	Jennifer Balcerzak Muller Jennifer Balcerzak Muller was born and raised in New York City and trained at the Joffrey Ballet School. Her professional credits include The Joffrey Ballet, Grand Rapids Ballet, New Jersey Ballet and the Fort Wayne Ballet and the dance film, Center Stage. Since joining Charleston Ballet, she has performed a broad variety of works, including: Alice in Wonderland (Alice), Captured Angel, Rite of Spring, Peter Pan (Tinkerbell), Camelot (Morgan Le Fay), Carmen (Micaela), The Nutcracker (Maria, Sugar Plum Fairy), Great Gatsby (Jordan Baker), Poetry with a Splash of Blood, Zorro, The Ellington Experience, Seasons of the Sun, and The Grinch; all choreographed by Jill Eathorne Bahr. Other credits include Lark Ascending (Bruce Marks), Souvenance (Eddy Touissant), Nine Lives (Daniel Pelzig), Notturno (Salvatore Aiello) and principle roles in George Balanchine’s Rubies, Serenade, and Who Cares?. Jennifer looks forward to her ninth season at CBT both in performing and teaching the next generation of ballerinas.

	James Peronto In his sixth season with CBT, James 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 Cat in the Hat, The Nutcracker, Nine Lives, Motown Mania, Zorro, The Ellington Experience, Wings, Twisted Tango, Rite of Spring, and Rubies.
	Austin Smith From Salt lake City,UT Austin graduated from Utah Valley University with a B.F.A. in Ballet. Austin attended UVU on scholarship, was awarded a Scholarly and Creative Opportunities Grant for his choreographic work, and was invited to the National Conference of Undergraduate Research for his research in Dance History. After graduation, Austin performed with Utah Regional Ballet under the direction of Jacqueline Colledge.
	Jonathan Tabbert Jonathan received his training from The Dayton Ballet and The Harid Conservatory. Additional training includes Houston Ballet, Burklyn Ballet Theatre, and American Ballet Theatre. Now in his thirteenth season with CBT, he’s been featured as the principal dancer in Zorro, Tarantella, Who Cares?, Coppelia, Romeo and Juliet, and The Nutcracker, as well as a soloist in Nine Lives, Bugle Boy, Piazzola, The Great Gatsby and Sleeping Beauty. Jonathan’s ground-breaking choreography has become a staple in CBT’s repertoire, with his Cat in the Hat and Carnival of the Animals anchoring CBT's successful Children’s Series.
	Molly Wagner Molly started her training in Denver, Colorado at the Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities. She attended the Conservatory of Music and Dance at the University of Missouri in Kansas City, on scholarship, to earn her B.F.A. in dance performance. While there, she danced many roles including the Mazurka in Les Sylphides, and Waltz Girl in George Balanchine's Serenade. Ms. Wagner has attended summer programs with Jillana, Kansas City Ballet, and Ballet Austin, including training under Maria Tallchief, Gretchen Warren, and Marjorie Thompson. She first worked with Elie Lazar at the Joffrey Ballet summer program in 2005. She has danced professionally with the Kansas City Ballet, Albany Berkshire Ballet, Missouri Contemporary Ballet, and the Montgomery Ballet.
	Melissa Weber Melissa 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 with Jeff Satinoff. 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 ninth season with The Charleston Ballet Theatre. Featured CBT roles include Lead Russian and Arabian in The Nutcracker, Female Gypsy Lead in Don Quixote, Lady Capulet in Romeo and Juliet, Madonna in Decadent Divas and the Matriarch in Jill Eathorne Bahr's Rite Of Spring.
	Crystal Wellman Crystal began her 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 dance professionally with the Montgomery Ballet and Oklahoma City Ballet. She is represented by DManagement and this is her first season with CBT.