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Raise a glass for Richmond Ballet: Richmond Ballet’s 16th Annual Auction offered fine wine and anything-but-ordinary auction items for a good cause
2/17/2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 17, 2009
Media
Contact:
Aaron Sutten
(804) 344-0906 x244
asutten@richmondballet.com
Thanks in part to Richmond Ballet and its 16th
annual auction, two couples will discover the mysteries of ageing Port with
accommodations at Portugal’s
two pre-eminent wine estates. This exotic package, including dinner and
accommodations for the lucky winners at Quinta do Crasto in the Douro Valley
in Portugal
as guests of the royal Roquette family, was one of the many tempting items
available at Uncorked, an annual
event held to benefit Richmond Ballet.
Uncorked is the Ballet’s largest social event of the
year and is hailed by its co-chairs – Mary Anne and Walter Hooker, Cyndi Massad,
Kendal Thompson, Charlie Stallings and Libby Robertson – as “a special
tradition that celebrates the finer things in life…wine, food, travel, art and
ballet.” The event met enormous success, raising over $215,000 for the Ballet’s
ongoing mission to “awaken and uplift the human spirit, both for audiences and
dancers.”
Presented by BB&T Wealth Management, Uncorked was held February 7, 2009 at
the prestigious Commonwealth Club in Richmond,
Virginia. Guests enjoyed a
gourmet dinner with fine wine. Everyone was entertained by Richmond Ballet’s Minds In Motion Team XXL, 5th
through 8th graders from local area schools, in an exciting
performance and the quick-paced styling of auctioneer Mark Motley as he
auctioned off a plethora of attractive items.
Live auction emcees Cyndi Massad and Bartholomew Broadbent,
of Broadbent Selections, Inc., took guests on an exciting adventure as they
auctioned off hundreds of items, including fine wine, fascinating art,
exquisite jewelry, full-blown vacations, skeet-shooting packages and even the
opportunity to perform in Richmond Ballet’s acclaimed production of The Nutcracker! Broadbent Selections,
Inc. prides itself in representing some of the finest small family owned
wineries from around the world. Some of their greatest discoveries include
wines from South Africa, Spain, Portugal,
Argentina, Chile, Austria,
Germany France, New Zealand
and Lebanon.
Not distracted by the sparkle of jewels or the lure of a royal
Portugal
retreat, wine connoisseurs in attendance had their pick of world-class wines.
“An Afternoon with Jefferson,” a collection
from Thomas Jefferson’s original 1774 vineyard sites was a huge hit among
bidders, including not only bottles of wine for bid but also a tour, wine
tasting and lunch! Another favorite, “Tasting of a Lifetime” was described by
Bartholomew Broadbent as one of the rarest and greatest wines in the world. The
1927 Setubal hails from the Setubal Peninsula
on the outskirts of Lisbon,
Portugal. The
winner of this lot received an invitation to the home of Bartholomew Broadbent
to taste this very same wine from his extensive cellar!
Bidders were also enticed by original Richmond Ballet items,
including an opportunity to perform in the 2009 production of The Nutcracker, an imaginative
Cinderella dress designed and created by Richmond Ballet’s costume department
and a magical birthday party experience for a special little girl featuring
storytelling and dance with Richmond Ballet’s own beautiful ballerina, Valerie
Tellmann.
While the evening didn’t include a grand pas de deux filled with graceful lifts,
the constant elevation of auction paddles and wine glasses more than made up
for it. Support from Uncorked not only helps make Richmond
Ballet’s main stage performances possible, such as Cinderella which was at the Landmark Theatre February 13-15th, but
also aids the School of Richmond Ballet and its education and outreach
programs, including Minds In Motion. Uncorked is vital to the
ongoing success of Richmond Ballet, as the auction raises more funds than any
other event of the year.