JULIA ADAM

VAL CANIPAROLI
Val Caniparoli’s versatility has made him one of the most sought after American choreographers in the United States and abroad. He joined San Francisco Ballet in 1973, and is most closely associated with that company, where he was Resident Choreographer during the 1980s.  He continues to choreograph for the Company under Artistic Director Helgi Tomasson. Caniparoli has contributed to the repertories of more than thirty-five dance companies, including Pacific Northwest Ballet, Boston Ballet, Northern Ballet Theatre, Pennsylvania Ballet, Royal Winnipeg Ballet, Ballet West (Resident Choreographer 1993-97), Washington Ballet, Israel Ballet, Cincinnati Ballet, Singapore Dance Theatre, Atlanta Ballet, State Theatre Ballet of South Africa and Tulsa Ballet, where he has been Resident Choreographer since 2001.

Caniparoli has created a body of work that is rooted in classicism but influenced by all forms of movement: modern dance, ethnic dance, social dancing, even ice skating.  One of his most performed works, Lambarena is danced to a score that fuses Johann Sebastian Bach with traditional African, and has become an international sensation.

Caniparoli has choreographed three full-length ballets: Lady of the Camellias (1994), The Nutcracker (2001) and Val Caniparoli’s A Cinderella Story, danced to themes by Richard Rodgers (2004). He has also choreographed productions for opera, theatre and the concert hall.

DAVID JUSTIN

JAMES KUDELKA
James Kudelka became Resident Choreographer of The National Ballet of Canada in 2005, following nine years as artistic director.  He brings to the role an international reputation as one of the most imaginative and vitally important figures in contemporary ballet. His many works, which encompass a wide variety of forms, from original full length story ballets and re-interpretations of the classical canon to more intimate chamber and solo pieces, exemplify a tireless intelligence, probing and exploring the emotional and psychological avenues of the human condition with a vision at once forthright yet deeply compassionate. A remarkably prolific artist, his more than seventy ballets have been staged by dance companies throughout the world.

HARRISON McELDOWNEY
Harrison McEldowney is known for his witty choreography filled with intricate partnering and a theatrical dance vocabulary developed from his time working within several theatrical venues. His work can be seen in a number of large scale productions including the 1992 Barcelona Olympics Closing Ceremonies and Carnegie Hall's Celebration of 125 Years of Musical Theater. McEldowney has also contributed work to Collection Rouge for the Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS.

CHRISTOPHER WHEELDON
Christopher Wheeldon is being called a wunderkind in the ballet world for his choreography, recently making his triumphant operatic debut, drawing critical acclaim for his project with the Bolshoi Ballet and creating his dynamic, new company named Morphoses.

The New York Times praised his piece for the Metropolitan Opera as “dazzingly glamorous and sophisticated as it is pretty.” The resident choreographer for New York City Ballet, Mr. Wheeldon was nominated last fall for an Olivier Award for DGV (Danse à Grande Vitesse) with The Royal Ballet in London. The demand for his artistic brilliance has taken him to Moscow, San Francisco, Oslo, Boston, Spain, Seattle, and Miami in the last year, with other performances soon in Australia, Houston, and Washington, D.C.



YURI ZHUKOV
Yuri Zhukov is choreographer and theater designer whose work builds upon his career as a dancer of both classical and contemporary ballet works. Mr. Zhukov’s modernist sensibilities embrace the future of dance, while invoking the richness represented by his personal stage experience.

Mr. Zhukov was born in St. Petersburg, Russia and received his training at the famed Vaganova Ballet Academy.  In 1982, Zhukov joined The Kirov Ballet where he danced for seven years in many classical roles, achieving the rank of Soloist. In 1989, Mr. Zhukov joined San Francisco Ballet, where he performed principal roles in Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, Les Sylphides, The Nutcracker to name a few. His Balanchine repertoire includes principal roles in Scotch Symphony, Agon, Seranade, Symphony in C, and Four Temperaments. In 1995, Mr. Zhukov joined The Birmingham Royal Ballet. 

The choreographers for whom Mr. Zhukov created new roles include Tomasson, Bintley, Kudelka, Caniparoli, McKayle, and Welch.

As choreographer and designer, Mr. Zhukov has created new works for 59 North - Touring Group of the Royal Swedish Ballet Soloists, The Birmingham Royal Ballet, The Birmingham Contemporary Music Group, English Dance Youth Company, City Youth Ballet and others.  A multi-talented artist, Zhukov recently provided the set design for San Francisco Ballet’s production of The Firebird, which received its debut performance to sold-out houses during the 2007 Repertory Season. The other design works include Firebird and La Valse for Oregon Dance Theater and numerous productions for The City Youth Ballet in San Francisco.