Gerard Ebitz joined Miami City Ballet as an original member of the Company in 1986. Twenty seven years later, he has returned to the MCB family as a teacher at MCB School. We asked Gerard about his ballet homecoming and what exciting endeavors he is partaking in at MCB School.
MCB: When did you first join Miami City Ballet and how long did you dance here?
Gerard: I was a founding member of Miami City Ballet and I performed with the company for the first two years.
This week we are preparing for our final performance of the 2013-2014 Season at the Kravis Center! Our dancers have fully transformed into macho bullfighters, street dancers and sensual gypsies for our full-length production of Don Quixote. In fact, a lead Gypsy lady will be taking over our Instagram feed to cover all of the action in this popular, delightfully Spanish work. Follow principal dancer Patricia Delgado at #PatriciaMCBphotos.
With Company promotions announced last week, we are thrilled to welcome two Miami City Ballet School (MCB School) students who have been invited to join Miami City Ballet for our 2014-2015 Season. We extend a big congratulations to students Ellen Grocki and Alex Manning for becoming official members of the Company! Learn about these dancers and their reactions to the exciting news below!
We are getting ready for a performance filled week ahead! On Tuesday, several dancers will premiere their original works created in collaboration with New World Symphony fellows during the FREE series — Inside the Music . Then, only three days later, the entire Company heads up to Ft. Lauderdale for the opening of Don Quixote at the Broward Center. With performances spanning the Florida coastline, we are fortunate to have corps de ballet dancer Zoe Zien taking over our Instagram feed to capture it all! Follow Zoe at #ZoeMCBphotos!
We are proud to announce that two dancers will be promoted next season. We send a huge congratulations to Nathalia Arja and Leanna Rinaldi!
After visiting a rehearsal at Miami City Ballet studios, New World Symphony (NWS) fellows began meeting regularly with a group of our dancers to examine the relationship between sound and movement, resulting in a creative exchange between the talented young artists. Corps de ballet dancer Michael Breeden explains how this organic relationship will materialize onstage in the very near future!
Miami City Ballet and New World Symphony have long been the two pillars of Miami’s arts world, attracting acclaim from audiences and critics alike. The dancers and musicians work in the same neighborhood, frequent each other’s performances, and have always expressed how wonderful it would be to work together. After decades as South Florida’s premier arts organizations, it is with great excitement that we prepare for our first full-evening performance together on March 18th — a creative exchange between the dancers of Miami City Ballet and the fellows of New World Symphony.
Our 2013-2014 Season has completely flown by! The Company is now preparing for its final program of the season — the full-length production of Don Quixote. This ballet dates back to 1869, when choreographer Marius Petipa created it for the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow. Having danced in Spain himself, Petipa’s choreography reflects the local culture by incorporating the Spanish dance idiom into the movements and bringing Cervantes’ sensual gypsies and macho bullfighters to life onstage.
We have such a busy week ahead! Today, we head to Naples to perform an all-Balanchine program including Ballo della Regina, Tschaikovsky Pas de Deux and Episodes. Then, we turn back around and travel east to West Palm Beach for our final performances of Program III: Triple Threat at the Kravis Center. During our travels, its nice to reflect upon the journey our dancers have taken as artists, exploring the realms of singing and acting for West Side Story Suite. While it has been challenging, frustrating, and at times, just plain scary, our dancers have achieved a tremendous artistic feat.
Our dancers kicked off their pointe shoes and slipped into sneakers and heels for the premiere of West Side Story Suite. Watch how they learned Jerome Robbins’ big, Broadway dance moves in our final video of the ‘Triple Threat’ series. There is only one more chance to catch West Side Story Suite during Program III: Triple Threat at the Kravis Center (Palm Beach) this weekend – Feb. 28-Mar. 2.
Not only did our dancers have to sharpen their acting skills for the premiere of West Side Story Suite, but they also had to learn SING! Yes, ballerinas singing! Watch the latest video in our Triple Threat series to find out if our dancers can actually carry a tune.
Catch Program III: Triple Threat at the Broward Center (Feb. 21-23) or Kravis Center (Feb. 28-Mar. 2).