2018 Judging Panel
The Organizing Committee of the World Ballet Competition has announced members of the 2018 Judging Panel.
*Click on picture to read judge biography*
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BRIAN YOO UNIVERSAL BALLET |
SHARON STORY ATLANTA BALLET |
PASHA KAMBALOV FIRST STATE BALLET THEATRE |
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KRISTINA KAMBALOV FIRST STATE BALLET THEATRE |
SLAWOMIR WOZNIAK PHOENIX BALLET / MASTER BALLET ACADEMY |
ELEUSA LOURENZONI INTERNATIONAL MASTER TEACHER & CHOREOGRAPHER |
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HSIENFA CHENG CHENG BALLET ACADEMY |
WILLY SHIVES BALLET SAN ANTONIO |
HEATHER FRYXELL BALLET WEST |
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CHRISTOPHER MOORE BALLET THEATRE UK |
NATALIA BASHKATOVA BOLSHOI THEATER GRIGOROVICH BALLET |
RODNEY RIVERA BALLET BRIO |
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EVIE PEÑA-SHIVES ARTS & EDUCATION SPECIALIST |
JEAN LOGREA WESTCHESTER BALLET |
Bolshoi Theater Grigorovich Ballet/Former Principal Dancer
Natalia Bashkatova trained at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy in Moscow and the Bolshoi Ballet University. She was a principal dancer for the Bolshoi Theater Grigorovich Ballet and a guest principal dancer with the New York City Ballet. She toured worldwide to countries including Holland, Greece, Egypt, Hong Kong, France, and Belgium. Her awards include "Best Ballerina of the Festival" at the 1992 Spoleto International Arts Festival. From 1998 to 2017, she was a principal dancer in Cirque du Soleil's "La Nouba".
Founder & Artistic Director/Cheng Ballet Academy
Hsienfa Cheng began his dance education at the National Taiwan University of Arts where he was given the Honourable Ballet Dancer award from the National Taiwan Theatre in 1988. Mr. Cheng has worked extensively with The Atlanta Ballet, and as principal dancer for The Metropolitan Ballet Theatre, and the Contemporaneo Ballet de Caracas in Venezuela. In 1995, he joined Singapore Dance Theatre as Principal Dancer. Currently, he is the Artistic Director of Cheng Ballet Academy, which he co-founded with his wife, Ms Tan Yaling, in Singapore in 2006. A prolific choreographer and teacher, Mr Cheng has won many teaching and choreography awards at the Japan Ballet Competition, Tokyo Ballet Competition, Barcelona Dance Awards, and World Ballet Competition among others.
Principal Faculty Member & Associate Director of Adaptive Dance/Ballet West
Heather Fryxell received her early dance training with Thomas Armour and earned degrees in English literature and educational psychology from Brigham Young University. Upon graduation, Ms. Fryxell danced with the Atlanta Ballet before joining Southern Ballet Theatre (currently Orlando Ballet) as a principal dancer. During her 11 year tenure with the company, she directed performances for over 20,000 Orange County school students and directed the School of Southern Ballet Theatre. In 2000, Ms. Fryxell co-founded the Central Florida Ballet and the Ballet Academy of Central Florida. Upon returning to Utah in 2005, Ms. Fryxell began teaching at Ballet West where she is a principal faculty member and associate director of adaptive dance.
First State Ballet Theatre/Executive Director
Kristina Kambalov founded the First State Ballet Theatre (FSBT) with Pasha Kambalov in 2000. She has served as School Director of FSBT for the past 17 years and this marks her second season as Executive Director. She studied ballet with Jean Allenby in Indiana, North Carolina School of the Arts and the Joffrey Ballet School. She danced with the Ballet Theatre Pennsylvania and Russian Ballet Theatre of Delaware. Ms. Kambalov has served on the jury of the World Ballet Competition and is the recipient of the 2006 Wilmingtonian Award.
First State Ballet Theatre/Artistic Director
Pasha Kambalov is a graduate of the Vaganova Ballet Academy in St. Petersburg and danced with the Donetsk Ballet, Komi Republic State Opera Ballet, Russian Ballet Theatre. Mr. Kambalov is the founding Artistic Director of First State Ballet Theatre; growing the company from 10 to 22 dancers and moving to Wilmington, Delaware's historic Grand Opera House. He has successfully built artistic partnerships with Delaware Symphony Orchestra, Opera Delaware, and Grand Opera House. Mr. Kambalov has served as a judge for the World Ballet Competition since 2013 and became president of the jury in 2016.
Graz Ballet, Westchester Ballet/Director
Jean Logrea trained at the Choreographic Institute in Cluj, Romania before joining the Cluj Opera House as both a principal dancer and a instructor for the affiliate school. For nine years he was entrusted with a class of especially talented students, all of whom danced internationally with major companies. He was a principal dancer with the Graz Opera House for seven years before becoming the Co-Director of the Logrea Dance Academy in Ossining, NY and the Co-Artistic Director of Westchester Ballet Company.
International Master Teacher and Choreographer
Eleusa Lourenzoni studied at the Royal Academy of Dance in London and Municipal Ballet School in Brazil. She received a graduate degree in the History of Art, with specialty in ballet terminology and dance history. She has performed with Municipal Theater Ballet São Paulo, Maria Olenewa Ballet, Ballet of the City Sao Paulo, and Victor Aukstin Company. Mrs. Lourenzoni actively participates as a master ballet teacher and juror in major festivals, and has choreographed works in Brazil, U.S.A. and Argentina. She is the recipient of the Gala Ismael Guiser and Dance Personality Award in Brazil.
CHRISTOPHER MOORE - UNITED KINGDOM
Artistic Director/Ballet Theatre UK
Christopher Moore founded the Ballet Theatre UK company in 2008 and has since created over twelve full-length ballets for the Company. The success of the Company has subsequently led to the development of The School of Ballet Theatre UK, founded in 2014 and has fast become of the leading classical training institutions in the country. He trained at Tring Park School of Performing Arts and The Royal Ballet School and has toured the world with many companies and choreographers. Christopher held the position of Head of Dance at Midland College, Nottingham, for five years and Artistic Director of Encore Dance Company at Ting Park School of Performing Arts. He has been an invited lecturer and judge at many international dance competitions and teacher conventions around the world.
Arts & Education Specialist
Evie Peña-Shives trained with Danish ballerina Grethe Sullivan and at the Harkness Ballet School in New York City. She danced with the Milwaukee Ballet, Minnesota Dance Theater, Ballet Austin, and Tulsa Ballet Theatre. She has been on the faculty of the School of Ballet Chicago, Chicago Ballet Arts, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre and Pittsburgh Dance Alloy. Pena-Shives was honored in 2012 with the Patron of the Arts Award from Chicago’s Our Lady of Mount Carmel. She holds a Masters degree in Education from DePaul University and a BA degree in Communications from Chatham College.
Ballet Brio/Artistic Director
Rodney Rivera trained under the direction of Vladimir Issaev, Carlota Carrera, Silvia Marichal, and on scholarship at Point Park University. In 1994, he became the first male Puerto Rican to participate in the International Ballet Competition in Jackson. Rivera has performed in Taiwan, Cuba, Haiti, Egypt, Japan, USA, Mexico, Spain and Italy. He joined Ballet Brio in 1999 and became Artistic Director in 2010. Awards include Choreography Gold Medal at the Argentina International Dance Competition in 2006 and "Best Choreographer of the Year" by the Puertorrican Institute of Culture in 2010.
Ballet San Antonio/Artistic Director
Willy Shives was named Artistic Director of Ballet San Antonio in December of 2015, after a brilliant 16 year tenure with the Joffrey Ballet, declared by the New York Times as “an astounding dancer". Shives studied with Nikita Talin in Texas before receiving a scholarship to train at the School of American Ballet. Shives has performed with companies in New York, Austin, Tulsa, Milwaukee, Minnesota and Pittsburgh. He is the recipient of the 2004 Natalie Skelton Legacy Award and "Chicagoan of the Year” by The Chicago Tribune.
Atlanta Ballet/Dean of Centre for Dance Education
Sharon Story joined the Atlanta Ballet after a professional dance career that spanned more than 20 years, including tenures with Joffrey Ballet II, the School of American Ballet, New York City Ballet, Atlanta Ballet and Boston Ballet. She has toured with Rudolf Nureyev all over the world. Ms. Story trained under full scholarship with Joffrey Ballet under Robert Joffrey and later with a Ford Foundation Scholarship at School of American Ballet. In 1996, in addition to her role as ballet mistress, Ms. Story was named Dean of the Atlanta Ballet Centre for Dance Education.
Phoenix Ballet/Artistic Director, Master Ballet Academy/Artistic Director
Slawomir Woźniak trained at the Poznań Ballet School and upon graduation in 1986, he accepted an invitation to join the Wroclaw Opera House. In 1988, Mr. Woźniak became a soloist Teatr Wielki in Łódź and in 1989 was promoted to principal dancer. Mr. Wozniak joined the Ballet of the National Opera in Warsaw as a first soloist in 1991. From 2000-2011 he was a principal dancer with the company. Mr. Woźniak is a graduate of the Ballet Pedagogy at the Frederic Chopin Academy of Music in Warsaw. Mr. Woźniak's honors include being awarded the bronze medal at both the New York IBC and the Japan IBC. He was nominated for “Revelation of the Year 1992” by French Magazine Danse.
Universal Ballet/Artistic Director
Brian Yoo graduated from Jilin Arts School, studied dance pedagogy at the Beijing Dance Academy, and later joined Universal Ballet as a soloist. In 1995, he became ballet master and choreographer at the Guangzhou Ballet in China and moved to the National Ballet of China in Beijing in 1997. Mr. Yoo rejoined Universal Ballet as Ballet Master in 1999; promoted to Assistant Artistic Director in 2000; and Artistic Director in 2009. Mr. Yoo choreographed several ballets for the Universal Ballet, most recently the full-length Korean ballet, The Love of Chunhyung.
The Judges
