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 |
GENNADI NEDVIGIN 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 |
RODNEY RIVERA BALLET BRIO |
ADDITIONAL MEMBERS OF THE JUDGING PANEL WILL BE ANNOUNCED SOON!
Founder & Artistic Director/Cheng Ballet Academy
Mr. 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.
First State Ballet Theatre/Executive Director
Ms. 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
Mr. 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.
International Master Teacher and Choreographer
Mrs. 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.
Atlanta Ballet/Artistic Director
Nedvigin trained at the Bolshoi School before joining San Francisco Ballet as a soloist in 1997. He was promoted to principal dancer in 2000 and retired in 2016. During his career, Nedvigin performed principal roles in Tomasson’s Giselle, Nutcracker, Romeo & Juliet, Sleeping Beauty; Balanchine’s Coppélia; and Cranko’s Onegin. Nedvigin’s honors include the 2001 Isadora Duncan Dance Award and 1999 Erik Bruhn Prize. In February 2016, Nedvigin was appointed the fourth artistic director of Atlanta Ballet in the company’s 87-year history.
Ballet Brio/Artistic Director
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
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.
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.
2018 Judges