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Company Artists in Lorenzo di Loreto's Filigree. Photo courtesy of Matthew Sewell Photography.
SPONSOR AN ARTIST
Ballet Arkansas proudly features 17 world-class professional dancers from across the United States. With a donation of $1,500, you can sponsor a Company Artist of your choice for the 25|26 season. Your sponsorship comes with exclusive perks, including backstage tours, invitations to studio rehearsals, advance casting notices, and much more. Your generous support helps Ballet Arkansas retain top talent and furthers the reach of our mission. Email michael@balletarkansas.org to request sponsorship of your preferred Company Artist. *One sponsor per Company Artist, per season.
DEANNA STANTON
13th Season
Sponsored by Charles and Ginny Moulton
Deanna Stanton began dancing in her hometown of Clarksville, Maryland. She credits her early training to her time spent at the Baltimore School for the Arts. Deanna graduated with a BFA in Ballet from the University of Cincinnati - College Conservatory of Music. During this time, she was also a Trainee with Ballet West for two seasons. Since joining Ballet Arkansas, she has had the opportunity to perform principal or featured roles in George Balanchine’s Who Cares?, Gerald Arpino’s Reflections & Birthday Variations, Val Caniparoli’s Lady of the Camellias, Kenneth MacMillan's Romeo & Juliet, and Chris Stuart’s Under the Lights. She has also performed Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Lady Capulet in Romeo & Juliet, Mina in Michael Fothergill's Dracula, Fairy Godmother in Michael Fothergill's Cinderella, Big Swans in Swan Lake, Carabosse in Sleeping Beauty as well as the Sugar Plum Fairy, Snow Queen, Coffee & Dew Drop in The Nutcracker. She has had the privilege of working with choreographers such as Yuka Oba-Muschiana, Alia Kache, Thang Dao, Xin Ying, Madison Hicks, Kiyon Gaines, and Tom Mattingly. In addition to performing, Deanna has a passion for choreographing. She has created works for Texture Contemporary Ballet, Contemporary Dance Choreography Festival, Iowa Choreography Festival, New Century Dance Project, The Young Choreographers Festival and several works for Ballet Arkansas as well as Ballet Arkansas’ Summer Intensive. She has also created two full length ballets; Cinderella & The Little Mermaid.
MEREDITH LOY
11th Season
Community Cast Rehearsal Director
Sponsored by Drs. Monica Lo and Daniel Sherbet
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Meredith Short Loy, a native of Little Rock, Arkansas, received her early training at Arkansas Academy of Dance and Arkansas Festival Ballet. She holds a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in ballet performance from the University of Oklahoma. Since joining Ballet Arkansas Meredith has had the opportunity to perform works by Agnes de Mille, Christopher Wheeldon, Ma Cong, Flock, Xin Ying, Yury Yanowsky and George Balanchine. A few of Meredith’s most recent and favorite roles include Mina in Michael Fothergill’s Dracula, Tschaikovsky Pas de Deux by George Balanchine, Gerald Arpino’s Confetti and Reflections, the Sugar Plum Fairy in the Nutcracker Spectacular, Aurora from Sleeping Beauty, Odette/Odile in Swan Lake, David Bentley’s Galanteries, and most recently Juliet in Romeo & Juliet and the pas de deux from The Dream. In addition to perfoming, Meredith takes great pleasure in working as a rehearsal director for BA’s community casts and as an educator at the Ballet Arkansas School for Dance.
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LEAH NORWINE
7th Season
Sponsored by Megan Hall
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Leah Norwine grew up in Herndon, Virginia. She received her training at the Kirov Academy of Ballet of Washington, DC. She is a recipient of an NSLI-Y Scholarship and a Training and Performing Scholarship both from the Bolshoi Ballet Academy in Moscow. Upon graduation she danced at The Washington Ballet as a Trainee under both Septime Weber and Julie Kent before going on to dance with Oklahoma City Ballet in the Studio Company. Since joining Ballet Arkansas her favorite roles include; Jordan in Fothergill’s The Great Gatsby, Dew Drop and Arabian in Fothergill’s The Nutcracker, Yellow girl in Gerald Arpino’s Confetti, a Vampire in Fothergill’s Dracula, Big Swans and Pas de tois in Swan Lake, the pas de deux in Fothergill's The Web and a soloist in La Slyphide. Leah has also enjoyed working with various outside choreographers including; Simon Kuban, Yoshito Sakuraba, FLOCK - Alice Klock and Florian Lochner, Mariana Oliveira and fellow Ballet Arkansas company members Deanna Staton and Meredith Loy. Leah is also a comprehensively certified Pilates Instructor and loves to empower people to move better and experience the joy of movement. She would also like to thank her husband and family for all their support and encouragement.
ALDRIN VENDT
7th Season
Community Cast Rehearsal Director
Sponsored by Clark Trim and Henrik Thostrup
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Mr. Vendt started dancing at age 10 in Tyler, Texas. After 2 years he moved to Dallas, Texas where he studied at Ballet Academy of Texas under the direction of Lisa Slagle. Upon graduation, he attended Texas Christian University’s School for Classical and Contemporary Dance under the direction of Elizabeth Gillaspy with a full tuition scholarship. Mr. Vendt joined Oklahoma City Ballet for the 2017/18 and 2018/19 seasons. Here he performed several works choreographed by Robert Mills including Russian and lead Chinese in The Nutcracker and Czardas in Swan Lake. Vendt joined Ballet Arkansas for the 2019/20 season and has since danced featured roles in Swan Lake, The Nutcracker Spectacular, Dracula, Sleepy Hollow, The Great Gatsby, Sleeping Beauty, Romeo & Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Wonderland, and Carmen, in addition to numerous original commissioned works. Notable early roles include the Sugar Plum Cavalier in The Nutcracker and both the Prince and a Stepsister in Cinderella. Aldrin is in his 6th season with Ballet Arkansas and is proudly sponsored by Clark Trim and Henrik Thostrup.
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LAUREN YORDANICH
7th Season
Sponsored by The Mathews Family
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Lauren Yordanich began her dance training at Dance Arts of Chelsea in Michigan and went on to perform with Ballet Chelsea under the direction of Wendi DuBois. She furthered her education through summer programs with Pacific Northwest Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, the Cecchetti Council of America, and Ballet West, where she had the opportunity to work with choreographer Quinn Wharton during their choreographic workshop. Before joining Ballet Arkansas, Lauren danced as a trainee with Grand Rapids Ballet, working with choreographers such as Val Caniparoli, Penny Saunders, Brian Enos, Attila Mosolygo, and Olivier Wevers. Since joining Ballet Arkansas in 2019, Lauren has performed featured roles, including Odette/Odile in Swan Lake, Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Aurora and Lilac Fairy in The Sleeping Beauty, the Sugarplum Fairy and Dew Drop in Michael Fothergill’s The Nutcracker Spectacular, Lucy in Dracula, Michaela in Carmen, and Tiger Lily and the Cheshire Cat in Wonderland: Alice’s Epic Adventure. She has also performed in works by Sir David Bintley and Gerald Arpino, as well as contemporary pieces by Thang Dao, Tsai Hsi Hung, Yury Yanowsky, Yoshito Sakuraba, Madison Falconer, Murray McCormack, Meredith Loy, and Matt Larson-Arziari. Lauren performed Deanna Stanton’s “Your Eyes Whispers” at the Young Choreographer’s Festival in New York, NY. In addition to performing, she is passionate about teaching and serves as a community cast director with Ballet Arkansas.
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BRITTANY DOWDY
5th Season
Sponsored by Drs. Andy Terry and Julie Harris
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Brittany Harano Dowdy, originally from Memphis, TN, trained at the Ballet Memphis School and attended summer intensives at American Ballet Theatre, Boston Ballet, Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, and Kansas City Ballet. She graduated magna cum laude from Texas Christian University where she double majored in Ballet and Strategic Communication, received a Pilates Teacher Certificate, and earned Departmental Honors. At TCU, she worked with Marianna Tcherkassky, Jennifer Archibald, Darrell Grand Moultrie, Gabrielle Lamb, Francesca Harper, and Suzanne Haag. Additionally at TCU, she was Aurora in “Sleeping Beauty” and a demi-soloist in both “Les Sylphides” and “Don Quixote.” Since joining Ballet Arkansas in 2021, some of Brittany’s favorite roles include Titania in Frederick Ashton’s “The Dream,” Alice in Michael Fothergill’s “Alice in Wonderland,” Dew Drop Fairy and Snow Queen in Michael Fothergill’s “The Nutcracker,” Bluebird and Jewels in “Sleeping Beauty,” Lucy in Michael Fothergill’s “Dracula,” and works by Gerald Arpino, Tsai-Hsi Hung, Thang Dao, Lorenzo Di Loreto, Ashley Green, Yoshito Sakuraba, Yuka Oba-Muschiana, and Deanna Stanton. She currently enjoys teaching Pilates and freelancing as a Social Media Manager. Brittany extends her gratitude to God, her husband, family, and friends for their support and love!
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KERRIDWYN SCHANCK
4th Season
Sponsored by Elizabeth Michael
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Kerridwyn began and completed her training at The Portland Ballet, in Portland, OR. Ms. Schanck began her professional career as an apprentice at Ballet Idaho in 2017. Following this, she joined Northwest Arkansas Ballet Theatre in 2019. She then joined Ballet Arkansas in 2022. Her favorite performance opportunities since joining Ballet Arkansas include Cygnets in Swan Lake, Lady Capulet in Romeo & Juliet, and dancing Prelude variation in Les Sylphides, and dancing in works created by her fellow company dancers. Outside of performing, she is also passionate about choreographing and teaching dance. She is looking forward to her fourth season performing with Ballet Arkansas.
LAYLA TERRELL
4th Season
Sponsored by Dr. Edward and Mrs. Jeanne Anson
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Layla Terrell began dancing at age ten with Ballet Center of Fort Worth in Fort Worth, Texas, after competing as a high-level gymnast. She joined Ballet Frontier in 2014 as a Youth Company Trainee and performed in many full-length ballets, including lead roles in The Nutcracker, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Swan Lake, and Diana and Actaeon throughout her time there. In 2015, she received the bronze medal at the Star of Canaan Dance Competition in Hong Kong, along with several international scholarships. She is an NHS for Dance Arts inductee and received Honorable Mention for the 2021 NDEO Artistic Merit, Leadership, and Academic Award. Ms. Terrell spent the 2021/2022 season in the Professional Training Division Level 3 of Ballet West in Salt Lake City, Utah. While there, she performed in the company production of The Nutcracker, as well as in several Ballet West Academy productions, with featured roles in Raymonda, Coppélia, and Balanchine’s Divertimento No. 15. Since joining Ballet Arkansas, Layla has performed a variety of lead roles, including Dew Drop in Michael Fothergill’s production of The Nutcracker Spectacular, and Princess Florine in Sleeping Beauty. Additionally, she has appeared in productions of Dracula, Wonderland, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Swan Lake, and Romeo & Juliet, and in works by Michel Fokine, Sir David Bintley, Gerald Arpino, Yury Yanowsky, and Simon Kuban. Layla has taught for Ballet Arkansas’s education and outreach programs and has performed in works by Ms. Terrell graduated with her Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education in 2022 and loves using that knowledge to teach dance for various organizations in Little Rock, including outreach programs for Little Rock School District and Our House. Layla is very excited for her fourth season with Ballet Arkansas!
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SAGE FELDGES
4th Season
Community Cast Rehearsal Director
Sponsored by Robert and Amanda O'Neal
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A native of St. Louis, MO, Sage began her classical ballet training at Milwaukee Ballet School in Highschool. While training she attended many summer intensives including Milwaukee Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, Elements Ballet, and BalletMet. After graduating Highschool she trained as a youth company member with A&A Ballet and as a trainee with BalletMet. During her time at BalletMet, she was chosen to perform corpse de ballet roles in company productions by Edwaard Liang such as The Nutcracker, Giselle, and Dorthy and the Prince of Oz. She also had the privilege of performing works by George Balanchine including Concerto Barocco and Serenade (set by Nilas Martins and Wendy Whelan). Since joining Ballet Arkansas in 2022, she has had the honor of performing many principal roles including Sugar Plum Fairy and Snow Queen in The Nutcracker, Aurora in Sleeping Beauty, and most recently Juliet in Romeo & Juliet. Sage also takes great joy in teaching the next generation of dance. She is a Rehearsal Director for Ballet Arkansas community cast performances and teaches in the School For Dance.
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KEITH NEWMAN
4th Season
Community Cast Rehearsal Director
Sponsored by Dr. Alan and Mrs. Amber Bagley
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Keith Newman, a Washington DC native, trained for 11 years at The Washington School of Ballet under the guidance of Kee Juan Han and Xiomara Reyes. During his time at the school, Keith had the opportunity to perform in numerous ballets by the Artistic Director, Septime Webre, including world premieres of Peter Pan and ALICE (in Wonderland). He also served as a Repetiteur for The Washington Ballet’s The Nutcracker in 2017. Following his training at The Washington School of Ballet, Keith studied at Indiana University under the direction of Sarah Wroth. In his time there, Keith performed in Justin Peck’s In Creases, George Balanchine’s Allegro Brillante and Donizetti Variations, as the Shy Boy in Jerome Robbins' The Concert, in Antony Tudor’s Dark Elegies, and in August Bournonville’s Kermesse in Bruges. He graduated from Indiana University with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Ballet and an Outside Field in Arts Management. Since joining Ballet Arkansas, Keith has performed classical/neoclassical roles such as Jonathan in Dracula, the White Rabbit in Wonderland, Mercutio in Romeo & Juliet, and in contemporary roles by choreographers Yoshito Sakuraba, Yuka Oba-Muschiana, Tsai Hsi Hung, and Lorenzo di Loreto.
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MURRAY McCORMACK
3rd Season
Sponsored by Justin Bank
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Murray is originally from Macon, Georgia, where she received training at Dance Arts Studio under Alice Sheridan. During her later teen years, she supplemented her training by studying privately with coaches Rebecca Metzger and Jessica Saund. Throughout her education and professional career, Murray has attended summer intensives at The School of American Ballet, Miami City Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet, and Orsolina28. From 2018 to 2022, she danced at Indiana University Ballet Theater under the direction of Sarah Wroth and other renowned teachers namely Carla Körbes, Michael Vernon, Kyra Nichols, Christian Claessens, and Sasha Janes. At IUBT, she performed prestigious repertoire such as Twyla Tharp’s Deuce Coupe, George Balanchine’s Walpurgisnacht Ballet, and Justin Peck’s In Creases. After graduation, Murray was invited to join Ballet Austin as an Apprentice where she danced under Artistic Director Stephen Mills and Michelle Martin for the 2022/23 season. During her time at Ballet Austin, she had the opportunity to perform in Stephen Mills’ The Nutcracker and Cinderella, George Balanchine’s Serenade, and to work with choreographer and former Nederlands Dans Theater dancer Alexander Anderson on his original contemporary work, Desert Rose, which is her favorite performance to this day. The following season, she was hired as a Company Artist with Ballet Arkansas under Artistic Director Michael Fothergill. The past two seasons Murray has most enjoyed dancing the roles of Pas de Trois in Swan Lake, corps in David Bintley’s Galanteries, and the Dewdrop Fairy in Michael Fothergill’s The Nutcracker. Murray has a passion for choreographing and during her second season was honored to choreograph a piece on the company titled "Realize," for which she commissioned original music. She has also taught at several dance schools throughout her career and currently is an instructor for the Ballet Arkansas School for Dance.
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WILLIAM HEIDE
2nd Season
Sponsored by Robert and Amanda O'Neal
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William Heide is originally from Racine, Wisconsin, and began dancing at the age of 8, taking lessons at The Studio of Classical Dance Arts under the tutelage of Marc Darling and Linda Bennett. From Racine, William trained in Joffrey Chicago’s Conservatory program. From Chicago William attended Marian University in Indiana, where he would continue to dance with the Ballet Theater of Carmel, directed by Jane and Frank Weiner, and guest in their productions as lead Russian in The ‘Nutcracker’ and Benno in ‘Swan Lake’. William joined Milwaukee Ballet II under the direction of Mirelle Favarel, Calvin Hilpert, and Davit Hovanysian in 2022. At Milwaukee Ballet, William performed roles in Artistic Director Michael Pink’s productions of “Hunchback of Notre Dame,” “Swan Lake,” and “Peter Pan,” in addition to Milwaukee Ballet's second company’s showcases of “Momentum.” Since joining Ballet Arkansas in 2024 William has had the privilege to portray Escamillo in Michael Fothergill’s “Carmen,” and Tybalt in “Romeo & Juliet.”
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BENJAMIN PINER
2nd Season
Drs. Ann and Ashay Patel
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Benjamin Piner was born on camp Lejeune in North Carolina and started dancing at around the age of 8 at the Florida ballet in Jacksonville Florida. After dancing in Jacksonville for three years he moved to Cary North Carolina to join the International Ballet Academy to further his ballet education. While being at the International Ballet Academy, he trained with Nadia Pavlenko, Maxim Ponomarenko, Emma Fernette and Rossana Nesta in the pre-professional program. During his time there he went to ADC IBC finals and to the Youth American Grand Prix. After five years at the International Ballet Academy he was offered to join the Richmond Ballet as a trainee. During his time in the trainee program he performed roles such as minion in Ma Cong’s Firebird, Franz in The School of Richmond Ballet’s performance of Coppélia Suite. During his first season with as an apprentice with Ballet Arkansas Benjamin performed roles such as Benvolio in Romeo & Juliet and puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Ben is very excited to see what’s in store for his first season as a company member and looks forward to the performances of the 25/26 season!
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McKENNA ULBRICK
1st Season
Sponsored by Eric and Amy Wolf
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McKenna Ulbrick was born in Reston, VA and began training in ballet at the age of 3. Training at Skye Ballet Center under Jody and Allen Schissler, she competed at the YAGP Finals where she received a scholarship to attend The Rock School for Dance Education. After two formative years under Bo and Stephanie Spassoff and receiving coaching from Telmo Moreira and Natalya Zeiger, McKenna received a scholarship to attend San Francisco Ballet School led by Patrick Armand. While there, she enjoyed the expertise and passion of her teachers. McKenna attended The Royal Ballet School Summer Session and was then a trainee with The Washington Ballet under Xiomara Reyes and Rinat Imaev where she performed in The Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker with the company. She also performed in trainee performances as 3rd shade in La Bayadere pas de trois, La Esmeralda soloist, and The Queen of Dryads, Kitri’s friend, and Bridesmaid in Don Quixote. Last season, McKenna enjoyed dancing with Grand Rapids Ballet as a trainee. She performed in various programs such as Septime Webre’s Peter Pan, Val Caniparoli’s The Nutcracker, and Jumpstart, where she choreographed and performed in a number of pieces. McKenna is thrilled to be joining Ballet Arkansas.
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ALLEN SIZEMORE
1st Season
Sponsored by Dr. Julie Robinson
Allen is from Fort Wayne, Indiana where he started dancing at the age of nine. Allen graduated from the Auer Academy of Fort Wayne Ballet under the direction of Karen Gibbons-Brown and Eleonora Pokhitinova Hartung. Allen was the only student in the school’s history to receive consecutive most improved dancer scholarships. During his schooling, Allen attended summer intensives at San Francisco Ballet, The Royal Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet, Ballet Austin, and others. He went on to become a trainee with Fort Wayne Ballet for one season performing roles such as “Quincy Morris” in Tracy Tritz’s Dracula, “Spanish Lead” in The Nutcracker, and “Hungarian Lead” in Swan Lake. In 2023, Allen joined Milwaukee Ballet II under the direction of Mireille Favarel, Davit Hovhannisyan, and artistic director Michael Pink. During his tenure there, Allen had the privilege of working with choreographers such as Timothy O'Donnell, Nelly van Bommel, and Lorenzo Di Loreto. He also performed in Mireille Favarel’s staging of Paquita, Michael Pink’s Dracula as “Impresario", and the world premier of Pink’s The Nutcracker: Drosselmeyer’s Imaginarium. Allen then spent a season as a soloist with Ballet Theater of Maryland under the direction of Nicole Kelsh. Here, he performed roles such as “Pas De Trios” in Bourneville's Napoli, “Merliton” in Dianna Cuatto’s The Nutcracker and “Spanish Lead” in Swan Lake. Allen is currently studying for his bachelor’s degree in political science from Indiana University. This is his first season with Ballet Arkansas.​​
CLAIRE CHURCHILL
1st Season
Sponsored by Dr. Angela and Kevin Rowe
Claire Churchill began her formal ballet training at Contra Costa Ballet in Walnut Creek, California. While at Contra Costa Ballet, Claire studied under Emily Borthwick and Charles Anderson. She continued her training at City Ballet San Francisco under the direction of Galina Alexandrova. During these years, Claire was able to further her technical and artistic goals by working with Katarina Wester and Anne-Sophie Rodriguez. Claire continued her training at Orlando Ballet School where she performed in the company’s Nutcracker and Toni Pimble’s The Jungle Book. As part of her training, Claire attended many summer intensives including, Joffrey Chicago, ABT and Boca Ballet Theatre. In 2022, Claire joined Louisville Ballet’s Studio Company. During her time with Louisville Ballet, she had the opportunity to perform in numerous productions. Some of her favorites include Val Caniparoli’s Nutcracker, Balanchine’s Scotch Symphony, Ching Ching Wong’s 502, and Cupid in Alun Jone’s, Don Quixote. This year, Claire is thrilled to continue her professional career with Ballet Arkansas for the 2025/2026 season.​​
Liev Ewart
1st Season
Sponsored by Suzanne and Dr. Early Babbie
Liev Ewart grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area. In his formative years, he trained at Contra Costa Ballet School, San Francisco Ballet School, and Ellison Ballet. He joined Sacramento Ballet’s Second Company for their inaugural year of 22/23. During his time there, he performed in pieces set by artistic director Anthony Krutzkamp, including his Nutcracker, Swan Lake and Pink Martini. He also had the opportunity to work with choreographer Colby Damon, performing in his ballet film adaptation of Leo Tolstoy’s After the Ball. The following year of 23/24, he attended the School of Philadelphia Ballet as a trainee. As a trainee, he performed in Angel Corella’s and Russel Decker’s On Cloud 9, the Pas de Deux from Satanella, and the Pas de Quatre from Raymonda. For the 24/25 season, he was promoted to Philadelphia Ballet’s Second Company under Second Company director Davit Karapetyan. During his time as a second company dancer, Liev had the opportunity to dance in works such as artistic director Angel Corella’s Le Corsaire and his Swan Lake , and Balanchine’s Allegro Brilliante and The Nutcracker. Additionally, he performed in Helgi Tómasson’s Concerto Grosso and Kin Sun Chan’s Scraag. Some of the summer intensives Liev has attended include the Royal Ballet School and English National Ballet School in London, and the American Ballet Theatre and Ellison Ballet in New York City. Liev is honored and excited to become a part of Ballet Arkansas for their 2025-26 season.​
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