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GLASS SLIPPER CEILING
Women Artistic Directors
7/9/2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 9, 2009
Media Contact:
Aaron Sutten
(804) 344-0906 ext. 244
asutten@richmondballet.com
PARTICIPANTS SET FOR MINDS WIDE OPEN SEMINAR
RICHMOND
- Richmond Ballet and Richmond CenterStage Foundation are pleased to announce
that they will co-sponsor a seminar entitled “The Glass Slipper Ceiling” as
part of the statewide arts event, MINDS WIDE OPEN: Virginia Celebrates Women
in the Arts. The seminar will be held April 28, 2010, at Richmond
CenterStage and will focus on the rarity of female artistic directors at major
ballet companies and how the traditionally male-dominated field may be
changing.
Joining
Richmond Ballet Artistic Director Stoner Winslett for the event will be Suzanne
Farrell (The Suzanne Farrell Ballet of Washington, DC), Celia Fushille (Smuin
Ballet of San Francisco), Victoria Morgan (Cincinnati Ballet), and Dorothy
Gunther Pugh (Ballet Memphis). Former New York Times Chief Dance Critic Anna
Kisselgoff will moderate the panel discussion, and Dance/USA Executive Director
Andrea Snyder will make the official introductions at the event. Members of the
national dance community are expected to attend as well.
The
idea for the seminar was inspired by a 2007 New York Times article by Claudia
La Rocco entitled, “Often on Point but Rarely in Charge.” In the article, Ms.
Winslett was named as one of only four women in the country that held the sole
artistic leadership position of a ballet company with a budget of at least two
million dollars (according to a study by Dance/USA, the national service
organization for dance).
Suzanne
Farrell is best known as the ballerina who was New York City Ballet founder and
choreographer George Balanchine’s long-time muse. The company operates under
the aegis of The Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, and employs both permanent
artists and guest dancers. The company has recently formed partnerships with
Ballet Austin and Cincinnati Ballet, presenting joint performances with both
companies.
Formerly
with San Francisco Ballet, Celia Fushille was invited by Michael Smuin to join
his company in 1993. She also served as ballet mistress and was named associate
director in 1998. Ms. Fushille was named to the director’s position following
Smuin’s death in 2007.
Victoria
Morgan has served as Artistic Director of Cincinnati Ballet since 1997. A
former principal dancer with San Francisco Ballet and Ballet West, Ms. Morgan
has recently taken on the job of CEO in addition to her artistic
responsibilities.
Ballet
Memphis was founded by Dorothy Gunther Pugh in 1986. Her ballet training
includes studying with the Royal Academy of Dancing in London and David Howard
in New York.
Stoner
Winslett was named artistic director of Richmond Ballet in 1980 and led the
organization’s transition from civic to professional ballet company in 1984.
The company, which recently celebrated its 25th Anniversary, will
perform at the Chicago Dancing Festival this summer and will make its third
appearance at The Joyce Theater in New York in April 2010.
Anna
Kisselgoff was named chief dance critic of the New York Times in 1977 and
continued in that position until the end of 2005. Ms. Kisselgoff left her
full-time position at the Times in 2006, but remains a contributor to the
newspaper. She also writes for the Voice of Dance website.
Andrea
Snyder has been the executive director at Dance/USA since 2000, and has held
administrative positions with Laura Dean Dancers, the Cunningham Dance
Foundation, The Dance Notation Bureau and the Tisch School of the Arts Dance
Department, among others. She has also served as assistant director of the
National Endowment for the Arts Dance Program and the Pew Charitable Trust’s
grant program, the National Initiative to Preserve America’s Dance (NIPAD).
“CenterStage
Foundation is excited to support such an important dialogue among arts industry
professionals, and I hope that by illustrating the unique experience of these
women, we open new lines of discussion and thought,” said Janet Krogman,
director of education for CenterStage Foundation. “The Foundation strives to be
a catalyst for the creative arts and expose audiences to new opportunities to
learn about the performing arts industry, as well as be entertained.”
The
seminar is free and open to the public; however, tickets are needed for entry.
For further information on securing tickets for “The Glass Slipper Ceiling,”
please contact the Richmond Ballet Box Office at 804.344.0906 ext. 224. For
more information about other MINDS WIDE OPEN events please visit www.vamindswideopen.org.
For more information regarding Richmond CenterStage and CenterStage Foundation
please visit www.richmondcenterstage.com.
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Richmond Ballet, The State Ballet of Virginia,
is dedicated to the education, promotion, preservation and continuing evolution
of the art form of ballet. Richmond Ballet strives to keep meaningful works of
dance alive and to produce and foster new works that remain true to these
values. Entering the 26th professional season, Richmond Ballet's mission is to
“awaken and uplift the human spirit, both for audiences and artists.”
***
For
further press information contact:
Aaron Sutten, Director of Marketing and Communications
EMAIL:
asutten@richmondballet.com; CALL: (804) 344-0906
x244
Press photos available upon request