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RCB News – Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: LOCAL DANCERS TAKE TOP HONORS AT INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Out of hundreds of dancers from more than 40 ballet schools throughout the U.S. and Japan, five Rochester City Ballet (RCB) dancers took home top honors at the Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP) Regional Semi-Finals in Torrington, Conn., this past weekend. Gabriel Davidsson, Jordan Drew, Megan Kamler, Jim Nowakowski, and Brittany Shinay represented the Timothy M. Draper Center for Dance Education, the official training school of RCB. All dancers placed among the top 12 out of 54 classical and contemporary soloists from 45 different dance schools. “We are so proud of our dancers,” said Jamey Leverett, artistic director for both RCB and the Draper Center for Dance Education. “They are passionate, talented and dedicated artists who are more than deserving of these outstanding honors.” The Timothy M. Draper Center for Dance Education was awarded Most Outstanding School and Leverett, of Webster, received Most Outstanding Choreographer for her ensemble piece Symbion. Nowakowski, of Webster, was awarded the Grand Prix, the competition’s highest honor in the senior age division, for his two classical variation solos Acteon and Solor and his contemporary solo Carry Me Home. Shinay, of Pittsford, received first place honors for her contemporary solo, Kissing You. Shinay and Nowakowski were also awarded first place in the ensemble category for Symbion. In the classical dance category, Shinay and Drew, of Penfield, tied for second place honors for their classical variations from Raymonda and Paquita, respectively. Kamler, of Irondequoit, and Davidsson, of Brighton, also placed among the top 12 classical and contemporary soloists in the competition. The Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP) was founded in 2000 by Larissa and Gennadi Saveliev, formerly of the Bolshoi Ballet. The competition is the only student ballet competition in America that awards scholarships to the leading dance schools in the U.S. and abroad. The YAGP finals are held annually in New York City. For more information visit www.yagp.com. The Rochester City Ballet (RCB), founded in 1987, is a non-profit, educational corporation. The company presents a full season of quality dance to diverse audiences and helps keep the arts alive by presenting performances to educate and entertain adults and children at community events and special RCB performances. The RCB has created at least 20 new ballets including Firebird, Don Quixote, Cinderella and the annual Nutcracker. FOR MORE INFORMATION Contact: ###
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