Ballet Hispánico
Thursday, November 11, 2021 at 8pm
presented by Irvine Barclay Theatre

Artist Sponsor:
Toni and Terry McDonald 

Sponsored by:
An Anonymous Fund of the Orange County Community Foundation

This performance will include two 15-minute intermissions.

Artistic Director & CEO
Eduardo Vilaro

Founder
Tina Ramirez

The Company

Christopher Bloom, Jared Bogart, Leonardo Brito, Simone Cameresi, Antonio Cangiano, Shelby Colona,        Amanda del Valle, Alexander Haquia, Paulo Hernandez-Farella, Cori Lewis, Laura Lopez, Hugo Pizano Orozco, Omar Rivéra, Gabrielle Sprauve, Dandara Veiga, Lenai Alexis Wilkerson, Mariano Zamora

Rehearsal Director
Linda Celeste Sims

Associate Artistic Director & Latinx Institute Director
Johan Rivera

Company Manager
Glenn Allen Sims

Production Manager
SK Watson

Wardrobe Director
Amy Page

Lighting Supervisor
Caitlin Brown

Stage Manager
Morgan Lemos

Wardrobe Assistant
Stacey Dávila

MetLife Foundation is the Official Tour Sponsor of Ballet Hispánico.

Transformational funding provided by MacKenzie Scott and the Ford Foundation America's Cultural Treasures program. Major support provided by the Howard Gilman Foundation, the Miranda Family Fund, the Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, and the Scherman Foundation. Public support provided by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. Ballet Hispánico programming is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.

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Production Copyright 2021, Ballet Hispánico of New York, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Program is subject to change.

The taking of video, audio and photographs is strictly prohibited.

Buenas noches, good evening! Welcome to Ballet Hispánico’s Noche de Oro, a celebration of 50 incredible years of building new ways of exploring the Latinx culture through dance.

Tonight’s program starts with Arabesque, a work originally choreographed in 1984, set to Spanish composer Enrique Granados’ Twelve Spanish Dances. The ballet exemplifies the Company’s aesthetic during the 1970s, when the Company was experimenting with fusing flamenco with the classical ballet vocabulary. The choreographer, Vicente Nebrada, was one of only a few Latinx choreographic voices in the classical ballet world at that time. We honor Mr. Nebrada’s legacy and the impact of Ballet Hispánico’s mission to create a platform for Hispanic choreographers through this reconstruction.

Tiburones, which translates to “The Sharks,” is a work in direct response to the re-emergence of the musical West Side Story in our entertainment world today. In its day, West Side Story was an extraordinary piece of theater, as it was the first time the Puerto Rican community was featured in a major motion picture. While the musical gave us the incredible music of Leonard Bernstein and the captivating choreography of Jerome Robbins, it also left cultural scars for generations of Latinx people. Tiburones seeks to question the gaze of who gets to tell a story, while dispelling the iconic stereotypes that continue to haunt the Latinx community to this day. The work layers our vision of taking back our narrative through the voice of a Latina choreographer, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa.

Spanish choreographer, Gustavo Ramírez Sansano is known for his athletic and innovative movement vocabulary. In 18+1, Mr. Sansano delves deep into the music of Pérez Prado, the Cuban bandleader, pianist, composer, and arranger who popularized the mambo in the 1950s. Created during his nineteenth year as a working choreographer, Mr. Sansano creates an explosive musical celebration that captures the essences of our beloved Cuban music.

Thank you for joining us this evening in celebration of Ballet Hispánico’s 50 years. Enjoy the show, disfruten!

Eduardo Vilaro
Artistic Director & CEO

Choreography by Vicente Nebrada
Restaged by Linda Celeste Sims
Assisted by Johan Rivera
Music by Enrique Granados
Original Costume Design by Randy Barceló
Costume Reconstruction by Diana Ruettiger
Lighting Design by SK Watson

Performed by

Jared Bogart, Simone Cameresi, Antonio Cangiano, Amanda del Valle, Alexander Haquia, Paulo Hernandez-Farella, Laura Lopez, Omar Rivéra, Dandara Veiga, and Lenai Wilkerson

Oriental
Full Cast

Zarabanda
Antonio Cangiano

Vilanesca
Simone Cameresi, Amanda del Valle, Laura Lopez, Dandara Veiga, Lenai Wilkerson

Jota
Alexander Haquia, Paulo Hernandez-Farella, Dandara Veiga

Asturiana
Jared Bogart, Antonio Cangiano, Paulo Hernandez-Farella, Laura Lopez

Mazurca
Amanda del Valle, Alexander Haquia, Dandara Veiga, Lenai Wilkerson

Valenciana
Simone Cameresi with Full Cast

Oriental Reprise
Full Cast

Arabesque is an elegant suite of dances set to the music of Spanish composer, Enrique Granados. Traces of flamenco influence are hinted at in the upper body as the dancers move through lush balletic contemporary phrase work.

Intermission

Choreography by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa
Music by Pérez Prado, Dizzy Gillespie, and The Funky Lowlives
Compositions by James Bigbee Garver
Costume Design by Mark Zappone
Lighting Design by Joshua Paul Weckesser

Performed by

Christopher Bloom, Jared Bogart, Simone Cameresi, Shelby Colona, Antonio Cangiano, Amanda del Valle, Paulo Hernandez-Farella, Laura Lopez, Omar Rivéra, Gabrielle Sprauve, Dandara Veiga, Lenai Wilkerson, and Mariano Zamora

In Tiburones, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa addresses the discrimination and stereotypes placed upon Latinx culture and the power the media has in portraying these themes by diminishing the voices of Latinx artists. Ochoa will deconstruct gender roles and identity to revitalize an authentic perspective of Puerto Rican icons appropriated within the entertainment industry.

Photo by: Paula Lobo

Intermission

Choreography by Gustavo Ramírez Sansano
Music by Pérez Prado
Costume Design by Ghabriello Fernando
Lighting Design by Caitlin Brown and Savannah Bell

Performed by

Christopher Bloom, Jared Bogart, Simone Cameresi, Antonio Cangiano, Shelby Colona, Paulo Hernandez-Farella, Omar Rivéra, Gabrielle Sprauve, Dandara Veiga, and Lenai Wilkerson

18+1 celebrates Gustavo's 19 years as a choreographer and the vulnerability, care, and hope that comes with each artistic endeavor. In a display of subtle humor and electric choreography, the movement merges with the playful rhythms found in Pérez Prado's mambo music. Sansano draws from his history and memory to take a joyous look at the past, present, and coming future.

Photo by: Erin Baiano

For 50 years Ballet Hispánico has been the leading voice intersecting artistic excellence and advocacy, and is now the largest Latinx cultural organization in the United States and one of America’s Cultural Treasures. Ballet Hispánico brings communities together to celebrate and explore Latino cultures through innovative dance productions, transformative dance training, and enduring community engagement experiences.

National Medal of Arts recipient Tina Ramirez founded Ballet Hispánico in 1970, at the height of the post-war civil rights movements. From its inception Ballet Hispánico focused on providing a haven for Black and Brown Latinx youth and families seeking artistic place and cultural sanctuary. By providing the space for Latinx dance and dancers to flourish, Ballet Hispánico uplifted marginalized emerging and working artists, which combined with the training, authenticity of voice, and power of representation, fueled the organization’s roots and trajectory. In 2009, Ballet Hispánico welcomed Eduardo Vilaro as its artistic director, ushering in a new era by inserting fresh energy to the company’s founding values and leading Ballet Hispánico into an artistically vibrant future. Today, Ballet Hispánico’s New York City headquarters house a School of Dance and state-of-the-art dance studios for its programs and the arts community. From its grassroots origins as a dance school and community-based performing arts troupe, for 50 years Ballet Hispánico has stood as a catalyst for social change.

Ballet Hispánico provides the physical home and cultural heart for Latinx dance in the United States. Ballet Hispánico has developed a robust public presence across its three main programs: its company, School of Dance, and Community Arts Partnerships.

Through its exemplary artistry, distinguished training program, and deep-rooted community engagement efforts, Ballet Hispánico champions and amplifies underrepresented voices in the field. For 50 years, Ballet Hispánico has provided a place of honor for the omitted, overlooked, and oppressed. As it looks to the next 50 years and beyond, Ballet Hispánico seeks to empower, and give agency to, the Latinx experience and those individuals within it.

Photo credit for Tina Ramirez: Bruce Laurance
All other photos by: Rachel Neville

Annabelle Lopez Ochoa (Choreographer) has been choreographing since 2003 following a 12-year dance career in various contemporary dance companies throughout Europe. She has created works for 60 dance companies worldwide, including Ballet Hispánico, Atlanta Ballet, Cincinnati Ballet, Compañía Nacíonal de Danza, Dutch National Ballet, Finnish National Ballet, Royal Ballet of Flanders, Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève, Göteborg Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, BJM-Danse Montréal, New York City Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Pennsylvania Ballet, English National Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, and Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, to name a few. In 2012, her first full length work, A Streetcar Named Desire, originally created for the Scottish Ballet, received the Critics’ Circle National Dance Award for Best Classical Choreography and was nominated for the prestigious Olivier Award for Best New Dance Production the following year. Annabelle was the recipient of the Jacob’s Pillow Dance Award 2019.

Vicente Nebrada (Choreographer) was a founding member of the Harkness Ballet, where he began his choreographic career in 1964. In 1975, he became the founding artistic director and resident choreographer of the International Ballet of Caracas, creating numerous ballets and solidifying his reputation as an internationally acclaimed choreographer. In 1984, he was appointed artistic director of the National Ballet of Caracas, which he directed until 2002. His artistic support as resident choreographer helped establish Ballet Florida in Palm Beach in the mid 1990s. His works continue to be performed around the world and have been danced by more than 30 companies, including American Ballet Theatre, National Ballet of Canada, Joffrey Ballet of Chicago, and Ballet Hispánico.

Gustavo Ramírez Sansano (Choreographer) was artistic director of Luna Negra Dance Theater (2009-2013), and now combines his work as a freelance choreographer with the direction of Titoyaya Dansa, the company he founded in Spain with Veronica Garcia Moscardo in 2006. Sansano has received numerous awards for his choreography, including first prize at the Ricard Moragas Competition in Barcelona (1997), Prix Dom Perignon Choreographic Competition in Hamburg (2001), and Premio de Las Artes Escénicas de la Comunidad Valenciana (2005). Sansano has been commissioned to create works for many companies such as Nederlands Dans Theater, Compañía Nacional de Danza, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Luzerner tanz Theater, Ballet BC, The Hamburg Ballet, Atlanta Ballet, Ballet Hispánico, and Luna Negra Dance Theater, among others.

All Company photos by Rachel Neville

Randy Barceló (Costume Designer) was a multi-talented Cuban-born designer and artist. He was the first Hispanic person to be nominated as best costume designer for a Tony Award for his designs for Jesus Christ Superstar in 1972. Barceló designed costumes for many other Broadway productions, including Lenny, The Magic Show, and Ain’t Misbehavin’ among others. He also worked with several dance companies, including Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and Ballet Hispánico, where he worked on his final project in 1994, Alberto Alonso’s Si Señor! Es Mi Son!.

Savannah Bell (Lighting Designer) is a New York-based lighting designer and production electrician. She often spends time away from home working at places such as Okoboji Summer Theatre, Williamstown Theatre Festival, Santa Fe Opera, and touring the nation with Broadway musicals. Her past dance opportunities include the Missouri Contemporary Ballet, Jody Oberfelder, and Green Space Studios.

Ghabriello Fernando (Costume Designer) is a fashion designer from Puerto Rico who is known for his architectonical designs and classic silhouettes. His aesthetic is a bond between past and future; sophistication with a modern twist. From an early age, Ghabriello showed a talent for sewing and design. As a dancer, he began what became his life work by designing dance costume for classical ballets such as The Nutcracker, Dracula, Romeo and Juliet, and many others. In 2011, he debuted as an emerging designer, and his popularity spread abroad. Soon enough, many people started knocking on his door for exclusive designs, including celebrities and the First Lady of Puerto Rico, Wilma Pastrana. In 2013, he moved to New York and worked with great designers such as Angel Sanchez, Gustavo Cadille, and Zac Posen. In 2015, he redesigned costumes for Pedro Ruiz’s Club Havana for Ballet Hispánico.

Diana Ruettiger (Costume Reconstruction) has served as wardrobe supervisor for Luna Negra Dance Theater and costume designer for Dance for Life Chicago, Columbia College, and The Chicago Academy for the Arts. She has worked as stitcher and crew for the Joffrey Ballet and numerous Broadway touring shows. Ms. Ruettiger owned and operated a costume shop for 25 years before moving to New York to begin her tenure supervising wardrobe for Ballet Hispánico.

Joshua Paul Weckesser (Lighting Designer) is originally from Normal, Illinois. He is the founder of Bread & Roses Productions, dedicated to providing production support to art-based originations. Working primarily in circles of dance, Weckesser's designs have been seen across the U.S. and internationally. Weckesser has been working closely with Molly Shanahan / Mad Shak as a lighting designer and core collaborator since 2003. He also works with LEVELdance and the Chicago Human Rhythm Project as their resident lighting designer. Career highlights include lighting the first ever evening-length production of American Tap at The Kennedy Center, working with Karole Armitage in the Netherlands, and touring with Gobsmacked and Che Malambo.

Mark Zappone (Costume Designer) served Pacific Northwest Ballet from 1983 to 1988 as costume designer, shop supervisor, and wardrobe master. He then moved to Monte Carlo, where he managed costume shops for Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo and Le Cabaret de Monte-Carlo, continuing to Switzerland and Amsterdam with Holiday on Ice. Mr. Zappone has collaborated with many renowned choreographers and designers, including Twyla Tharp, Christopher Wheeldon, and Yuri Possokhov, among others. In addition to his many ballets for PNB, Mr. Zappone has designed costumes for numerous dance companies worldwide.

Glenn Allen Sims (Company Manager) performed for 23 years as a principal dancer with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Mr. Sims grew up in Long Branch, New Jersey, where he began his classical dance training at the Academy of Dance Arts in Tinton Falls, New Jersey. He received a scholarship to the Ailey School's Summer Intensive and attended The Juilliard School under Benjamin Harkarvy. Mr. Sims has been featured on several network television programs, including BET Honors, Dancing With The Stars, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and So You Think You Can Dance. Mr. Sims, a master teacher, is a certified Zena Rommett Floor-Barre instructor and certified Pilates mat instructor. He has performed in the White House Dance Series and for the King of Morocco. He was featured on the cover of and has written a guest blog for Dance Magazine.

SK Watson (Production Manager and Lighting Designer) has worked as a lighting designer for live events and theater for nearly 20 years regionally and in New York. Watson was the lighting supervisor for New York Stage and Film for four seasons. They have designed and coordinated lighting for events and concerts in NYC for the past several years. Favorites include Rihanna’s Diamond Ball, War Child, Michael Kors, and many more. They have also worked extensively with theater companies in New York including Underling Productions, St. Bat's Players, Everyday Inferno, and others, and have designed over 50 productions for the Cincinnati Shakespeare Company. Watson holds a BA from Centre College and an MFA in Lighting Design from Ohio University. They are thrilled to be working with Ballet Hispánico.

Amy Page (Wardrobe Director) is a costume creator and wardrobe supervisor who is thrilled to return to Ballet Hispánico as its wardrobe director. She enjoys working with costume designers and artists to transform their dreams into reality. Through lightning-fast quick changes and marathon loads of laundry, her calm, capable presence brings a ray of sunshine to the backstage world. Her costumes have graced the stages of Lincoln Center and The Joyce Theater and can be seen in the repertory of Kyle Abraham’s A.I.M., Dance Theater of Harlem, Keigwin & Company, Dorrance Dance, and Camille A. Brown and Dancers. She has had the pleasure of dressing Tatiana Maslany in Network, as well as the cast of Hamilton on Broadway and has worked in television as a costume fitter for seasons 3 and 4 of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Amy holds a BFA from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

Caitlin Brown (Lighting Supervisor and Lighting Designer) has worked as a lighting designer for dance and theater for eight years. She is a recent graduate of Ohio University, receiving her MFA in lighting. Designs include Silent Sky (Ohio University), Revolt. She Said. Revolt Again. (Hangar Theatre), Septem (The Nouveau Sud Project), Elements (DanceFX Atlanta), Henri (Dance Theatre of Greenville), Freedom Train (Matthews Playhouse), and Hand to God (Actor’s Theatre of Charlotte). Associate and assistant credits include Macbeth (Ohio University), Sense & Sensibility (Indiana Repertory Theatre), and Rhinoceros (Tantrum Theatre).

Morgan Lemos (Stage Manager) is happy to be working with Ballet Hispánico for its 2021-2022 tour season. She has previously worked on productions by Mount Holyoke College Dance Department where she graduated in 2020. During this time, she also performed for the Mount Holyoke College Dance Department as well as the Five College Dance Consortium and the Doug Varone and Dancers Company. Morgan holds a BA in Physics from Mount Holyoke College.

Stacey Dávila (Wardrobe Assistant) is from San Juan, Puerto Rico, where she worked for the fashion design line, Ecliptica. This is when Norein and Michelle Otero inspired Stacey to pursue a career in costume design. It was her love for costumes, storytelling, and collaboration that made her relocate to Tampa, Florida, where she completed a bachelor's in costume design at The University of South Florida. She designed for theater and dance companies in NYC, and her most recent project was with the Vail Dance Festival, where she collaborated with companies including New York City Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, and Ballet X, and dancers including Lauren Lovette and Lil Buck. She worked for Ballet Hispánico as a wardrobe assistant for three seasons and is now back with the Company on its current tour.

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As a partner in the annual National Choreographers Initiative, Irvine Barclay Theatre is also pleased to acknowledge all those who support this important contribution to American dance.

National Choreographers Initiative 2026
Molly Lynch, Artistic Director

Honorary Producer 

Bobbi Cox

Joanne and Dennis Keith

Barbara Roberts

Michelle Rohé

Richard and Elizabeth Steele Endowment Fund

Choreographer Sponsor

Terry Causey

Sophie and Larry Cripe

Judi Gorski

Diane Silber

Dancer Sponsor

Ellen Breitman and Brien Amspoker

James Carter

Croul Family Foundation

Janet and Henry Eggers

Mary and Andrew Franklin

Artistic Sponsor

Alan Andrews and Molly Lynch

Betsy Andrews and Alex Moad

Diane Diefenderfer and David Hanlon

Gale Edelberg and Bob Butnik

Gillian Finley and Robert Labaree

Carol Hamilton

Nancy and Ned Kriz

Dr. Rosalyn Laudati and Dr. James Pick

Kathryn Lynch and Robert McDonnell

Rachelle Menaker and Eddie Schuller

Marica Pendjer and John Miller

Andrew Rose

Sally Anne and Don Sheridan

Paula Tomei and David Emmes

Lynn Weiser and Mike Tompkins

Patron Sponsor

Dr. Michael Bear

Stacie Brandt

Laurie and Bart Brown

Gail and Denis Kalscheur

David Carmichael

Joseph Herron and Dana Klein

Chuck Johnston

Margi and John Murray

Diana Putz

Kim Smith

Jenny Szabo

Karen and Gary Thorne

Barbara and Jack Tingley

Dance Shoe Sponsor

Diane and Dennis Baker

Darci Bodin

Bronny Daniels

Roberta Fox

Sharon McNalley

Ivar Roth, Concierge Podiatry & Spa

Katy and Jack Schoellerman

Ann and Richard Sim

Linda and Steve Weitz

Dance Partner

Ellen Fujikawa

Mike Kerr and Jenny Backhaus

Maurice and Alexandra Mandel

Edward McPherson

Rita Mitchell

Mitsuhiko and Reiko Nakano

Dr. Janice Gudde Plastino

Rosalind Russell

Joseph Sheridan

Dan & Jeanne Stokols

Robert Strang

Mary Vensel White

Update as of 7/14/26

DONATE TODAY

Please consider making a donation to support the work of the National Choreographers Initiative. We need your contributions to support the dancers and choreographers involved in the project. Be an angel to the arts-dance! Thank you!

Send your donation to: NCI 3334 E. Coast Hwy #276, Corona del Mar CA 92625