! Registration Packet 2015-16 Faculty Artur Sultanov, Artistic Director Mr. Sultanov was born and raised in St. Petersburg, Russia. He trained at Vaganova Ballet Academy and at age 17, joined the Kirov ballet where he danced a classical repertoire. Artur has also performed with Eifman Ballet as a Soloist. In 2000 he moved to San Francisco to join Alonzo King’s Lines Ballet. In 2003 Artur joined Oregon Ballet Theatre. His principal roles at OBT include the Prince in Swan Lake, Ivan in Firebird, and the Cavalier in the Nutcracker, among others. Mr. Sultanov has performed on the stages of the Metropolitan Opera House, Kennedy Center, Bolshoi Ballet Theatre, and the Mariisnky Theatre in his native city of St. Petersburg. In addition to being an accomplished dancer, Mr. Sultanov has also taught extensively throughout his professional career. In the past eight years, Mr. Sultanov has taught and choreographed for the school of Oregon Ballet Theatre and Lines Contemporary Ballet School of San Francisco. His vast experience also includes holding master workshops in the Portland Metro Area, Seaside, OR, Vancouver and Tacoma, Washington. Artur Sultanov is excited to be a part of the Portland dance community and is looking forward to inspiring a new generation of dancers. Vanessa Thiessen Vanessa Thiessen is originally from Portland, OR. She trained at the School of Oregon Ballet Theatre, with James Canfield, and continued on to dance for Oregon Ballet Theatre from 1995-2003. At OBT she danced leading roles in Gissele and Romeo and Juliet. After moving to San Francisco in 2003, she danced with Smuin Ballet, ODC Dance, Amy Seiwert’s Imagery, Opera Parallele and Tanya Bello’s Project b. In 2010, she began teaching for ODC Dance, which lead to teaching ODC master classes across the US and in Indonesia, Burma, Thailand and China. For the past 5 years, she has also been teaching ODC repertory class at San Francisco State University. After moving back to Portland this year, Vanessa now splits her time between San Francisco and Portland dancing. teaching and choreographing. Currently in SF, she dances with Post:Ballet, teaches at ODC/School and is a creative collaborator for Choreographer KT Nelson. Currently in Portland, she dances with Skinner/Kirk Dance Ensemble and teaches ballet, jazz and modern classes for BodyVox. Vanessa is thrilled to be joining the faculty at Sultanov Russian Ballet Academy. Tracy Julias Tracy Julias’ distinguished career in ballet spanned more than a decade and included tenures with the Joffrey Ballet, Oregon Ballet Theatre, Nashville Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet and others. She performed and has been recognized for many notable roles and performances including George Balanchine’s Square Dance, Coppelia, Giselle as well as the role of Sugar Plum Fairy in numerous Nutcracker productions. In 1993, Tracy moved on to Oregon Ballet Theatre where she danced lead roles in the noted Canfield production of the Nutcracker, Swanhilda in Coppelia, and Giselle. She also worked with Carol Armitage, Jamie Hampton and John Selya among many others. Following a brief tenure of freelancing in San Francisco, Tracy was asked to join the Joffrey Ballet. There Tracy became immediately immersed in many wonderful roles from Antony Tudor “Lilac Garden” to Biancca in Taming of the Shrew. She also performed Sugar Plum and Square Dance along with Mr. Joffrey’s Birthday Variations and Gerald Arpino’s Footnotes for RJ. Tracy concluded her career as a dancer while at Joffrey having realized many of her dreams and goals as well as having the honour to perform and work with numerous inspiring, talented and incredible artists, legends choreographers and directors as well as the countless many who have made their mark in ballet over many years. Clairen Kearney Clairen Kearney is native to the Portland Oregon area. She started her ballet training at the age of six under Janis Waddle at Joy of Praise Dance Studio. At age 11 she continued ballet at On Your Toes Studios in Clackamas under Kelsey Neumann. Then at 13 she started training under Jacquie Kunzman at the Clackamas Youth Ballet and joined the company at age 14. It was at CYB where she began to train for teaching. She performed lead roles in CYB’s productions, such as Snow Queen in the Nutcracker and Laurie in Oklahoma. Teaching is a joy for her and this last year Clairen became owner and director of On Your Toes Studios. Besides teaching at the Sultanov Russian Ballet Academy she continues her own training under Artur Sultanov. Alicia Cutaia Alicia Cutaia earned her BFA with honors from Point Park University with a double major in Classical Ballet and Jazz. Her previous training included scholarships at Hubbard Street Dance, North Carolina Dance Theater, and River North Dance Company. She has worked with and performed pieces by many renowned choreographers, including Lauren Edson, Jamey Hampton and Ron De Jesus. Ms. Cutaia previously worked as Rehearsal Director, Costume Manager and Dancer with Eisenhower Dance, Dancer with Hubbard Street Dance and Giordano Jazz Dance Chicago. She also enjoys teaching and setting choreography nationally. Her work “Impact” was recently set on Eisenhower Dance. Her choreography for competition studios have won many National awards. Some of Ms. Cutaia’s teaching credits include the Lou Conte Dance Studio, Oakland University, American Ballet Theatre, Dance Theater of Harlem and the Eisenhower Center for Dance. A number of Ms. Cutaia’s students have been accepted on scholarship to many prestigious summer and college dance programs. ! Registration Information Level Placement Returning students: All returning SRBA students should register for the next session. All age recommendations and level placements are at the discretion of the Academy teaching staff and subject to the approval of the Academy Directors. Please note that it is not uncommon for students to remain in a level for more than one year. New students: SRBA levels do not necessarily correspond with levels offered at other schools. Placement class is needed for all Children’s Division, Levels I-V.I Parents of Pre-Ballet should register based on the age of the child on 9/1/2015. New students will be placed in a class according to their age and experience. Faculty may observe new students in class for up to one month. Class and company placement is at the sole discretion of the Artistic Director. Attendance & Makeup Classes Students are expected to attend all classes they have registered for. In the event that a student must miss class, please notify us by phone or email. Tuition will not be pro-rated for missed classes. However, we welcome students to attend another class as a makeup within the same month. Classes not meeting minimum enrollment may be rescheduled or canceled. Parent Observation/Viewing Weeks Parents are not allowed to observe dance classes from the hallway due to distraction. However, parents are invited to watch their child's class during Viewing Weeks. There are two scheduled Viewing Weeks for parents and family members to observe their child’s classes; see the Academy Calendar for dates. Classes will run as usual without any formal performance. Arrangements may be made through the Administrative Director to observe classes at times other than regularly scheduled Viewing Weeks, when possible. Performance Opportunities Students in Pre-ballet through Advanced program perform in the Academy’s annual Spring performance and Nutcracker. Additional performance opportunities will be available to company members. All recital participants of SRBA pay a performance fee of $125-$175. The performance fee helps offset the cost of putting on a production which includes costumes, extra rehearsal time outside of class, theater rental, wardrobe person on site during the shows, programs, lighting and sound manager, etc. Note the costumes remain the property of the Academy. Participation in the school’s performances is encouraged but not mandatory. Tuition Tuition is designed to be reasonable and comparable to other dance programs. SRBA accepts tuition payment by cash/check when paid in full (Sept-May) or in two installments, or through monthly Auto- Debit. Tuition is non-refundable and cannot be transferred, prorated or deducted. However, makeup classes are available and encouraged in the event of an absence. Makeups must be pre-arranged with the Administrative Assistant. If a student’s schedule is adjusted, tuition cannot be prorated or refunded. Student Waiver Student’s Name: DOB: Current Level: 2015-16 Level: Location: ☐ Beaverton Studio ☐ Lake Oswego Studio Past Training (Where/How Long?): Medical Needs: Parent/Guardian’s Name: Email: Phone: Street Address: City: State: Zip: I, guardian of the above named student, hereby consent to the participation for the student/s in Sultanov Russian Ballet Academy programs. I understand that tuition is non-refundable, not adjustable or transferable. I am aware that all forms of dance and the rigorous exercises associated with it place unusual stresses on the body and carry with them the possible risk of physical injury. I assume this risk and agree that the Sultanov Russian Ballet Academy programs, its staff, and the Sultanov Russian Ballet Academy facilities shall not be liable in any way for injuries sustained during attendance in this program. Parent/Guardian Signature Date Photographic Waiver I hereby give permission to Sultanov Russian Ballet Academy to take photographs, film, or videos of my child or myself. I consent to the use of such materials and/or the use