Tulsa Ballet

Tulsa Ballet is a professional American Ballet company located in Tulsa, OK. The artistic mission of Tulsa Ballet is "To preserve the tradition of classical ballet, promote the appreciation of contemporary dance, create works of superior and enduring quality, and educate through exemplary performances, training and outreach programs." [http://www.tulsaballet.org/inside_tulsa_ballet/history.htm Tulsa Ballet 2007-2008 ~ The Classic in Black & White With a Touch of Red ] ] The Company has toured throughout the United States and the world and has received consistent critical acclaim. The company was founded in 1956 by musician Rosalie Talbot and married couple, Roman Jasinski and Moscelyne Larkin. Jasinski and Larkin were famous dancers who were internationally known for their style in the grand Ballet Russe tradition. [ [http://www.danceinsider.com/f2006/f1121_1.html Tulsa Ballet ] ] Under their leadership, the troupe rose to the top echelon in the National Association for Regional Ballet in 1973 and became a fully professional company in 1978. After a successful engagement at Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College in 1983, a 1986 West Coast tour, and a return to BCBC in 1988 to perform George Balanchine's reconstructed Mozart's Violin Concerto, the company was hailed as one of Oklahoma's valuable arts organizations. [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1083/is_9_73/ai_55739055 Tulsa and the Italian Tornado - management of the Tulsa Ballet Company | Dance Magazine | Find Articles at BNET.com ] ]

In 1990 Roman Larkin Jasinski was appointed to succeed his parents as artistic director of the company. Unfortunately, the company did not thrive under his leadership and at the end of Jasinski's third season, the company began imploding as major conflicts between board members, dancers and the management came to a head. In November 1994, Jasinski tendered his resignation and left the company in chaos.

In 1995 renowned Italian dancer Marcello Angelini was appointed Artistic Director of the Tulsa Ballet. Angelini managed to successfully solve the internal conflicts within the company and raise the artistic achievements of the company simultaneously. He was successful at unifying the board members, working well with artistic director emerita Larkin, and establishing friendly relationships with his predecessors. "His gracious yet fierce tenacity, tough professional reputation, and superior negotiating skills soon earned him the nickname 'The Italian Tornado'."

Since Angelini began directing Tulsa Ballet in 1995, he has built a strong and highly versatile company that is capable of tackling both classical and contemporary works by well-known choreographers. The Italian-born, Kiev Institute-trained director expects dancers to achieve a technical level and artistic range comparable to that of the major companies he danced with (Deutsche Oper Berlin, Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, Ballet West). To grow a company, Angelini says, you have to stretch the dancer one way, then the other.

Angelini believes different styles--classical, modern, and contemporary--are parts of the same language. "It's all dance," he says, forming a large circle with his arms. "It's like my shoulder connects to my arm which connects to my hand. You can't separate them." Angelini's incredible gifts have helped shape Tulsa ballet into one of America's best ballet companies. [ [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1083/is_3_79/ai_n9534289 Tulsa Ballet speaks an international language in rodeo country | Dance Magazine | Find Articles at BNET.com ] ]

Tulsa ballet creates five productions annually in addition to The Nutcracker and reaches an audience of over 48,000 individuals every season. Under Angelini's leadership, the company has undertaken an ambitious repertory building program. For the past eleven years, Tulsa Ballet has added more than 60 new works to its repertory, many of which have been either American Premieres or World Premieres. Many of the world's best choreographers have worked with Tulsa Ballet including: Leonide Massine, Antony Tudor, Jerome Robbins, George Balanchine, Paul Taylor, Kurt Jooss, John Butler, Nacho Duato (ten works), Val Caniparoli who is its resident choreographer (with seven works and four world premieres), Stanton Welch, Luciano Cannito, Young Soon Hue, Ma Cong, Lila York, Twila Tharp and many others.

In its first international tour in 2002, Tulsa Ballet was declared by the Portuguese national magazine Semanario “One of the best in the world.” The company has received two feature articles in Dance Magazine during the past seven years, has been featured in the New York Times , Pointe Magazine and Dance Europe among others. In March of 2008, Tulsa Ballet was featured on the cover of Pointe magazine- a distinction given to only one ballet company each year. In April of 2008, Tulsa Ballet completed an ambitious $17.3 million integrated campaign, which was celebrated at the opening of the brand new Studio K- Kivisto Hall; an on-site, three hundred-seat performance space dedicated to the creation of new works.

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