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artistic & production teams MARIUS PETIPA (Choreographer, Paquita) “The Father of Classical Ballet” (March 11, 1818—July 14, 1910), was from Marseilles, France and son of a family of artists. His father, Jean, was a ballet master, and his brother, Lucien, was a principal dancer and later a choreographer at the Paris Opéra. After many years of dancing throughout Europe, Petipa was offered a position as principal dancer in St. Petersburg in 1847. There he apprenticed under ballet masters Jules Perrot and then Arthur Saint-Léon. In 1870, Saint-Léon left Russia, and Petipa was named chief ballet master. Petipa was the architect of greatness at the Imperial Ballet during the last thirty years of the 19th century; he developed the opulent, multi-act evening-length spectacle, which was to set the pattern for the entertainments so loved by the court audience. It was this grand classical style of controlled emotion (stressing the formal values of clarity, harmony, symmetry, and order) that produced such successes as Don Quixote, La Bayadère, Raymonda, and the ultimate — Sleeping Beauty. One of Petipa’s greatest contributions to classical ballet was the crystallization of the pas de deux, which always has a well-defined structure in his ballets consisting of the opening adagio for the ballerina and her partner followed by variations for each dancer. The two dancers again join in the concluding coda, which usually contains a display of pyrotechnics. Contributed by Nathan Hites, 2017. ATLANTA BALLET COSTUME SHOP (Costume Designer, Paquita and Pleiades Dances) is currently comprised of five people: Colleen McGonegle – costume director; Susan Carter – construction supervisor and costume technician; Chloé Gervais – costume technician; Abby Parker –shoe and wardrobe manager, and costume technician; Abby Dupree Polston – patternmaker and costume technician; Maddie Simmons - costume technician. Collectively they bring over 75 years of costuming experience to Atlanta Ballet, with each person brining their own unique and valuable skill set. During Gennadi Nedvigin’s tenure with Atlanta Ballet, the costume shop has supervised 15 new builds, and costumes for over 40 works. Supporting Nedvigin’s vision to bring new works to Atlanta, each season the costume shop constructs costumes for three to four world premieres with original designs. Recently the costume shop has designed costumes for Claudia Schreier’s Pleiades Dances, for Bruce Wells’ Atlanta Ballet 2 presents Beauty and the Beast, The Swan Princess and new a new Butterfly Pas de Deux in Snow White. BEN RAWSON (Lighting Designer, Paquita and Schubertiada) is an Atlanta-based lighting designer for theatre, opera and dance, member USA 829. Theatrical/Opera design work can be seen at The Alliance Theatre, Michigan Opera Theatre, Florida Studio Theatre, Atlanta Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, Theatrical Outfit, Actors Express, Aurora Theatre, Atlanta Lyric Theatre, 7 Stages and Synchronicity Theatre. Dance design work includes collaborations with choreographers Ana Maria Lucaciu, Troy Schumacher and Danielle Agami, as well as with Atlanta Ballet, Terminus Modern Ballet Theatre, Fly on a Wall, staibdance, Bluebird Uncaged, Proia Dance Project and Emily Cargill and Dancers. Ben has also worked across the country as an associate and assistant lighting designer for San Diego Opera (CA), The Alliance Theatre (GA), Berkshire Theatre Festival (MA), Atlanta Opera (GA), Utah Opera (UT), Atlanta Ballet (GA) and Playmakers Repertory Company (NC). benrawsondesign.com
