Houston Ballet
An Influential Company
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Houston Ballet is the fourth-largest professional ballet company in the United States. The classically trained company is committed to inspire the appreciation for dance and attract the world's best dancers.
General Information Name: Houston Ballet Location: Houston, Texas Current Artistic Director: Stanton Welch Official website: www.houstonballet.org Brief history There was a dream for dance in Houston to produce a school that would train dancers for a resident ballet company. Under the guidance of Tatiana Semenova, a former dancer with the Ballets Russes, an academy was established in 1955. By 1969, a professional company was created through the leadership of Nina Popova, also a former dancer with the Ballet Russes and the American Ballet Theatre. From 1976-2003, Ben Stevenson, a former dancer with Britain's Royal Ballet and English National Ballet, was the artistic director of the company and built them into the acclaimed company it is today. It was his leadership, training and choreography which made such an impact and transformed them from a regional company into an internationally recognized company. In 1989, Stevenson initiated the essence of the company's repertoire by bringing prominent choreographer, Sir Kenneth MacMillan and Christopher Bruce. Sir Kenneth worked with the company from 1989 until his death in 1992. Christopher Bruce still remains in the company today and is now the associate choreographer. Stanton Welch is currently the artistic director and continues to strengthen the company with a broad range of styles and guest choreographers. Dancers The company attracts the world's best dancers, including several who have won gold and silver medals at major international ballet competitions. The company is made up of 54 dancers, 40 percent of which are trained at the Ben Stevenson Academy which is connected with Houston Ballet. Renowned choreographer, Sir Kenneth MacMillan, created five of his pieces on the company dancers. Associate School Houston Ballet’s Ben Stevenson Academy offers ballet training for over three hundred students. A large number of the professional company dancers have come from the ranks of the academy. Stanton Welch has a clear vision of what the academy means to the company and has had a great influence on the students. The high standard of training is recognized internationally. The academy is situated in the same location as the company, in Houston, Texas. Performances The company produce about 75 performances each year at its home, the Wortham Theater Center. They also tour widely in Europe, Canada and around the U.S. They have choreographed a number of productions with other major ballet companies, including American Ballet Theatre, Boston Ballet and the National Ballet of Canada.
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