American Stars Gala

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The stars are coming in the Philippines for a once-in-a-lifetime show

Buy your tickets here: http://bit.ly/BuyAmericanStarsGala

This July, the stars align and converge here at Ballet Manila for a rare, once-in-a-lifetime spectacle. The next wave of international ballet superstars is coming to the Philippines for the American Stars Gala—a night of specially curated pieces performed by the fastest-rising names in the world of ballet. Our very own Lisa Macuja-Elizalde and Boston Ballet’s George Birkadze co-direct this star-studded show.

Ballet Manila and some esteemed international partners will bring in the hottest names in the industry. The Boston Ballet will be represented by half-Filipina Lia Cirio, Junxiong Zhao, and Hannah Bettes, while the Houston Ballet will send in Yuriko Kajiya and Jared Matthews. They will be performing with Ballet Manila company artists and exclusive guest artists Joseph Philips and Katherine Barkman.

 

LIA CIRIO
Principal Dancer
Boston Ballet

Lia Cirio, known as “one of the most accomplished actress-dancers” in the Boston Ballet, is a homegrown talent. At the age of 16, she won the National Foundation for Advancement of the Arts award for ballet, and she was then discovered by world-renowned Mikko Nissinen to join Boston Ballet II. She then rose up the ranks and became Principal Dancer in 2010. She, alongside brother and Principal Dancer at the American Ballet Theater, Jeffrey Cirio, have come together to form Cirio Collective – a contemporary company.


JUNXIONG ZHAO
Principal Dancer
Boston Ballet

Born in Chongqing, China, Junxiong Zhao boasts of numerous international and national awards under his belt. He started his career with the Shanghai East Ballet School in Shanghai, China, and he then continued his training at The Washington Ballet Studio Company and Ballet Arizona before being discovered by the Boston Ballet. He has won the Choreographic Prize at the 2015 International Competition for the Erik Bruhn Prize and the Senior Silver Medal at the World Ballet Competition in 2012. His Boston Ballet repertoire includes the “Nutcracker,” “Swan Lake,” and “The Sleeping Beauty.”

 

HANNAH BETTES
Second Soloist
Boston Ballet

Boston Ballet Second Soloist Hannah Bettes began her pro career with the Central Florida Ballet School back in 2007, and in 2010, she joined Next Generation Ballet. She was also named the Nadia Nernia Scholar at the Royal Ballet back in 2012, and she got the opportunity to perform at the Buckingham Palace and work with world-renowned choreographers during her stint with the company. Her career with the Boston Ballet started in 2014, and she has performed ballets choreographed by Marius Petipa and William Forsythe, among others. She was appointed second soloist last year.

 

YURIKO KAJIYA
Principal Dancer
Houston Ballet

One of ballet’s most prominent names, Yuriko Kajiya is a highly influential force not only in America but also in her hometown in Nagoya, Japan. She began her training at age eight at the Shanghai Ballet School, and competed in numerous ballet competitions during her younger years such as the Tao Li Bei National Ballet Competition and the Third International Ballet Competition. In 2000, she was granted the world-renowned Prix de Lausanne Scholarship, which lead her to the National Ballet School of Canada. In 2001, she joined the American Ballet Theater Studio Company and was appointed soloist in the main company in 2007. In 2014, she joined Houston Ballet, and was promoted to Principal Dancer in November 2014.

 

JARED MATTHEWS
Principal Dancer
Houston Ballet

Proud Houston native and protégé of the late and great David Howard, Jared Matthews has started his career under the guidance of Victoria Vittum and Gilbert Rome and took the American Ballet Theater Summer Intensive back in 2001. After being invited to be part of the American Ballet Studio Company, he joined the main company shortly after where he was appointed soloist in 2007. His career with the Houston Ballet started in 2014 as First Soloist, and he was then promoted to Principal Dancer after a well-received performance as Lucentio in “Taming of the Shrew.”

 

KATHERINE BARKMAN
Resident Guest Artist
Ballet Manila

Katherine Barkman is an American ballerina who is currently a guest principal dancer for Ballet Manila.  Since joining Ballet Manila in 2015, she has taken on the principal ballerina roles in Swan Lake, Don Quixote, Giselle, The Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, Romeo & Juliet, and Le Corsaire.

She has also competed and placed in many regional and international competitions like the 2014 Youth Americab Grand Prix in Philadelphia (Gold Medal in Women’s Senior Classical Division) and the 2015 Asian Grand Prix in Hong Kong (Grand Prize).  Katherine also won the silver medal in the Women’s Senior Division in the most recently concluded USA International Ballet Competition.

 

JOSEPH PHILLIPS
Resident Guest Artist
Ballet Manila

 

Hailed by the international press as “Ballet’s Golden Boy”, Joseph Phillips is a rare technically astute dance with an impressive array of awards and medals.  Phillips holds more internationally prestigious gold medals for dance than any other American dancer and was also awarded the Les Etoiles de Ballet in Cannes and Paris (France).

 

As a professional dancer, he has was a member of the San Francisco Ballet, the Miami City Ballet, and the American Ballet Theater.

 

Ballet Manila’s 23rd performance season is approaching, so come see the American Stars Gala to see what the company has in store! Watch this very special show on July 7, 2018, 7:30 PM at the Aliw Theater. Buy tickets at http://bit.ly/AmericanStarsBallet! Tickets are also available at all Ticketworld outlets; call ‎891-9999, or purchase online at www.ticketworld.com.ph.

 

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