 New
Jersey native
Adrienne Benz returns to BalletMet for her seventh season. Ms. Benz trained on full scholarship at Theatre Arts Dance Academy where she performed with Theatre Dance America training with Elaine Kudo and Buddy Balou. She has also studied three summers in New York City with American Ballet Theatre. She has performed at the International Contemporary Dance Festival in Poland. She has danced in the National Choreographers' Initiative for three summers. Some of Ms. Benz's favorite roles with the company include: Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty; Juliet in David Nixon's Romeo and Juliet; Mina in Dracula; The Chosen One in Doug Varone's Rite Of Spring, and Twyla Tharp's Sinatra Suite. Ms. Benz is honored to be a 2006 recipient of The Princess Grace Award for Dance. She is the 2009 Violetta Boft Award recipient.
Andrew Brader
 Originally
from Kansas City,
Jessica Brown received her training at American Dance Center under Kathy and Dennis Landsman as well as Paula Weber. She has studied on full scholarship at Boston Ballet and Milwaukee Ballet summer programs and performed in the RDA Honors Choreography Project at the 2002 International Ballet Competition. This is Ms. Brown's fifth season with BalletMet after dancing with the Company for one year as a trainee. Her favorite roles include Grown Up Clara in Gerard Charles' The Nutcracker, Juliet's Friend in David Nixon's Romeo and Juliet, Stanton Welch's Play and Blue, Ron de Jesus' High Note, Harrison McEldowney's Dance Sport and Swing in Jazz Moves.
 Olivia
Clark was born in Bellville, Ohio, and trained in the Pre-Professional Training Program of BalletMet Dance Academy, where she received the Lucy Porter Scholarship. Now in her twelfth season with BalletMet, Ms. Clark has danced professionally with Festival Ballet of Rhode Island and Nashville Ballet. She performed in 2006 in Bytom, Poland, as part of the International Contemporary Dance Festival. Her favorite roles include Mina in David Nixon's Dracula,
the Solo Girl in George
Balanchine's Rubies, performing Stanton Welch's Play and being the Muse for Byron Stripling and his trumpet in Maurice Hines' High C. Ms. Clark is married to Ballet Master Hisham Omardien and they have a daughter, Safiyyah.
 Jon Drake, a Mississippi native, started ballet through gymnastics training. He trained with Henry Danton for two years. On scholarship, he attended the Vienna Staats Opera Ballet School and John Cranko School under Pytor Pestov. Mr. Drake earned scholarships to summer intensives at Kirov Academy, American Ballet Theatre, Vail Summer Ballet Festival and Virginia School of the Arts. He participated in the Prix de Lausanne, Moscow Competition, the third OTR Austrian Competition and the International Ballet Competition. He has choreographed for academic schools, competitions and professional venues in the U.S. and Europe. Mr. Drake has danced in Russia, China, Venezuela, Germany and Switzerland. He has danced choreography from James Kudelka, Lar Lubovitch, Trey McIntyre, Julie Adam and others. Favorite roles include Just set on him by Trey McIntyre. He has danced as a soloist or principal for Deustch Oper am Rhein, Atlantic Southeast Ballet, Eugene Ballet and Oregon Ballet Theatre and danced with BalletMet Columbus in 2008.
 Andres Estevez began his training in Havana, Cuba, and later danced with Ballet Nacional de Cuba under the direction of Alicia Alonso. While dancing with Ballet Clasico de la Havana under the direction of Laura Alonso, his career flourished and he became a soloist and principal dancer of the company. His career includes tours and galas of several countries as well as winning silver and bronze in the Alicia Alonso competition in Cuba and a gold medal in a competition in Brazil. Mr. Estevez traveled to the U.S. in 1996 where he danced with Miami City Ballet. In Miami he performed as a soloist in Balanchine's Stars and Stripes, Scotch Symphony, Allegro Brillante and many others. In 1998 he joined Orlando Ballet as a principal dancer under the direction of Fernando Bujones. His extensive career at the Orlando Ballet includes roles such as Solor in La Bayadere, Albretch in Giselle, Colas in La Fille Mal Gardee, Franz in Coppelia, Basilo in Don Quixote, Krassus in Spartacus, Silfrid in Swan Lake, Prince Charming in Cinderella, Jean de Brienne in Raymonda, Prince Desire in Sleeping Beauty, Oberon in A MidsummerNight's Dream, King Arthur in Camelot and many others.
 Austin M.G. Finley began his dance training at age 3 in his hometown of Clearwater, Florida. At age 9 he discovered a passion for ballet while performing the role of the Prince in The Nutcracker with the Miami City Ballet. Mr. Finley received further ballet training under the tutelage of Lidia Fomina, Pavel Fomin, Suzanne Pomerantzeff, Sean Musselman, Mervet Elnabarawi, and Wagih Aboella. He continued his studies with Chautauqua Institute, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, Miami City Ballet, School of American Ballet, and American Ballet Theatre. Throughout his training he has appeared as a guest artist in numerous roles with various ballet companies. Mr. Finley competed in the Youth America Grand Prix Finals 2006 and was awarded a full scholarship to the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at American Ballet Theatre in New York City where he trained for two and a half years with Franco De Vita prior to joining BalletMet last season.
 Emily
Gotschall is happy to be returning to BalletMet for her fifth season. A Columbus native, she received her training at the BalletMet Dance Academy and was a member of the Professional Training Program. Prior to joining BalletMet, Ms. Gotschall danced for seven seasons with Dayton Ballet and with Terpsicorps Theatre of Dance in Asheville, NC. Emily finds both the classical and contemporary repertory at BalletMet fulfilling and lists among her favorite roles the Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker, Ophelia in Stephen Mills' Hamlet and Stanton Welch's Blue.
 Dustin James began his dance training at the age of 11 at his middle school in Houston, TX. From there he went to the small studio Discovery Dance Group under the direction of Pamela Stockman. Mr. James furthered his training at the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. While attending HSPVA, Mr. James began his formal ballet training at Ben Stevenson's Houston Ballet Academy. He trained at Houston Ballet for seven years and was a member of Houston Ballet II for two years. While at Houston Ballet, Mr. James was trained and coached by Claudio Munoz as well as Lazaro Carreno, Phillip Broomhead and Priscilla Nathan-Murphy. He has been fortunate enough to work with such choreographers as Stanton Welch and Tina Felhant. This is his second season with BalletMet.
 A
Florida native,
Bryan Jenkins spent three years at Douglas Anderson School of the Arts in Jacksonvill, Fla., where he trained in modern and contemporary dance under teachers such as Ellie Barret, Caroline Schmidt and Monica Macbeth. Also while in Jacksonville he joined Dance with Distinction, an after school program at Jacksonville University, where he was greatly influenced by Jonathan Guise. In 2003 he was accepted into the Harid Conservatory on full tuition scholarship, where he was trained exclusively in classical ballet by Olivier Pardina, Victoria Schneider and Svetlena Osiyeva. Upon graduating from Harid in 2004, Mr. Jenkins joined Houston Ballet 2 where he was coached by Claudio Munoz, Lazaro Carrerno and Phillip Broomhead. Mr. Jenkins received the Most Improved Award given to him by Houston Ballet's artistic staff. In 2006, Mr. Jenkins was chosen to set Stanton Welch's Fingerprints on the Cincinnati Ballet. Mr. Jenkins has performed numerous roles in ballets such as Jonathon Harker in David Nixon's Dracula, Aladdin in Gerard Charles' Aladdin, Stanton Welch's Blue, Benvolio in Nixon's Romeo and Juliet, the Prince in Charles' The Nutcracker, Welch's Bruiser, George Wilson in Jimmy Orrante's The Great Gatsby and Welch's Fingerprints.
 Originally
from Charlotte, N.C., Bethany Lee returns to BalletMet for her fifth season after studying at Houston Ballet. She graduated from Houston Ballet in spring 2005 where she was a part of Houston Ballet II on full scholarship. While in Houston, she enjoyed working with such choreographers as Stanton Welch and Claudio Munoz. Last season, Mrs. Lee enjoyed performing the role of Clara in Gerard Charles' The Nutcracker. Mrs. Lee has enjoyed performing the role of Bonnie of the duo Bonnie and Clyde in Harrison McEldowney's Group Therapy Part Deux, as well as Puss in Boots and the Fairy of Beauty in Petipa's The Sleeping Beauty.
 Samantha Lewis joins BalletMet for her second season after spending one season as a trainee. A Columbus native, Ms. Lewis began her training at BalletMet and is a graduate of the Professional Training Program. As a student, she was a recipient of the Daryl Kamer, Lucy Porter and Nancy Strause scholarships. Ms. Lewis has studied for two summers with American Ballet Theatre in New York City and as an apprentice with the Chautauqua Ballet.
 Annie
Mallonee, from Placerville, Calif., is in her sixth season with BalletMet. Prior to joining the company, she trained with BalletMet and was a recipient of the Lucy Porter Scholarship. She has also studied on scholarship with the Sacramento Ballet, Lines Ballet, and Idyllwild Arts Academy, where she graduated and was named Outstanding Dancer in 2003. Ms. Mallonee participated in the 2004 and 2006 Columbus Choreography Projects, and has appeared as a guest artist with Opera Columbus and with ProMusica Chamber Orchestra. Ms. Mallonee has enjoyed performing classical roles such as the Lilac Fairy in The Sleeping Beauty and the Spanish Doll in The Nutcracker, along with contemporary roles such as Jordan in The Great Gatsby, a Bride in Dracula, and Sweet.
 Courtney Muscroft was born in Columbus and studied ballet with Columbus Youth Ballet under ShirLee Wu. At age 12, she studied for a year at Canada's National Ballet School in Toronto. She attended summer courses at the School of American Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet and Miami City Ballet. In 2006, Ms. Muscroft was asked to be an apprentice with New York City Ballet and became a member of the corps de ballet in 2007. She has worked with many notable choreographers including Christopher Wheeldon and originated a corps de ballet role in Peter Martin's Romeo and Juliet. This is her first season with BalletMet.
 Andrew Notarile hails from Cranford, NJ, where he began his training with New Jersey School of Ballet. He continued his studies at the School of American Ballet, Miami City Ballet and Chautauqua Dance Festival, all on full scholarship. As a dancer with American Repertory Ballet, Mr. Notarile's strong virtuosity was seen in the roles of Cavalier and Nutcracker Prince in Graham Lustig's The Nutcracker; the title role in Petruchka, and featured roles in Danzantes, Octet and I (Heart) Kenji. His comedic timing was evident in the world premieres of Shadows in the Attic and Baker's Dozen. Additional lead roles include: Val Caniparoli's Suite and Lisa de Ribere's Starry Night. Mr. Notarile was invited by choreographer Richard Gibbs to participate in San Francisco's Third Annual "Choreographers and Friends." He is excited to return to BalletMet for a second season.
 Jimmy Orrante was a recipient of a 2005 Princess Grace Choreography Award. Now in his fifteenth season with BalletMet, the Los Angeles native has choreographed several works for BalletMet, including Emergence in BalletMet's 30th anniversary event 30x30 and his first full-length ballet in 2009, The Great Gatsby. Mr. Orrante attended the Los Angeles County High School for the Performing Arts under Don Hewitt as well as North Carolina School of the Arts. He has attended the International Summer Workshop in Budapest, Hungary; danced with Memphis Ballet, Nevada Dance Theatre and Los Angeles Chamber Ballet, and teaches at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp in Michigan's Manistee National Forest, where he is on faculty. A past recipient of the Violetta Boft Memorial Award, Mr. Orrante has enjoyed dancing numerous roles and has performed as a guest artist with Dance Kaleidoscope in Los Angeles, Northern Ballet Theatre in England and Dance St. Louis. He and his wife, former dancer Sonia Welker, have a young son, Isaac, and a daughter, Aiyana.
 Emily
Ramirez is thrilled to be in her sixth season with BalletMet after dancing with Houston Ballet II and the Sandra Organ Dance Company. Ms. Ramirez, who was born in Pasadena, Texas, studied at Houston's High School for the Performing Arts. She also received a full scholarship both to Adamson Ballet School and to Houston Ballet, where she choreographed a work on fellow students. Ms. Ramirez was a winner of the 2008 Columbus Choreography project. She participated in the Blue Lake Fine Arts Project this summer and toured through Europe performing the Don Quixote pas de deux. Her favorite roles include the lead woman in Bolero, Sugarplum Fairy in The Nutcracker and a Bride in Dracula.
 Kerri Riccardi, a New York native, is thrilled to join BalletMet for her first season after spending the previous season as a trainee. Ms. Riccardi received her training from Ballet Academy East as well as the School of American Ballet. She has spent her summers studying with Boston Ballet, American Ballet Theatre and San Francisco Ballet. She thanks her family, friends and teachers for their endless love and support.
 Jackson Prescott Sarver, returning for his sixth season, began his dance training at Nan Klinger's Excellence in Dance under Nan Klinger and Mia Klinger and performed with the Cuyahoga Valley Youth Ballet in Akron, working closely with choreographers Michael Vernon and Francis Patrelle. Mr. Sarver spent summers at the School of American Ballet, Chautauqua Dance Festival, Houston Ballet Academy and danced in Vevey, Switzerland. Graduating as valedictorian from high school in 2002, he was accepted to college at North Carolina School of the Arts (NCSA) and studied there from 2002-2004, with Warren Conover and the late Melissa Hayden. While working full time at BalletMet, Mr. Sarver compled his college coursework and, in July 2008, graduated from NCSA with a BFA in Dance. His favorite BalletMet roles include Jack Seward and Dracula in David Nixon's Dracula, Mercutio in Nixon's Romeo and Juliet, Carabosse in Gerard Charles' The Sleeping Beauty, duets Number 3 and Number 5 in James Kudelka's There, below, Fred Astaire in Harrison McEldowney's Group Therapy Part Deux, and Rat King in Charles' The Nutcracker. He thanks his family for their endless love and support.
 Gabriel Gaffney Smith, from Saugerties, New York, began dancing at the Saugerties Ballet Center. After studying in the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School Graduate Program, he joined the Company in 2005 as a corps de ballet member. Mr. Smith has also performed with River North Jazz Company in Chicago and Hisatomi Yoshiko Ballet in Japan. This is his second season with BalletMet.
Sara Stockman
 David Tlaiye was born in Puebla, Mexico, and began dancing at Myra Mier School of Ballet in New Orleans at age 11. He also studied at South Carolina Dance Conservatory's summer session and on scholarship at Houston Ballet Academy, where he won the Most Improved award in 2002. Now in his fifth season with BalletMet, Mr. Tlaiye danced previously with Bruce Wood Dance Company in Forth Worth, Texas, and Terpsicorps Theatre of Dance in Asheville, N.C.
 Zoica Tovar began her ballet training at the age of nine at the Alejo Campentier Ballet School in Cuba. She trained eight years and, after graduation, she was accepted at Ballet Clasico de la Havana under the direction of Laura Alonso. Her talent and dedication to the profession helped her become a principal ballerina shortly after acceptance into the company. She received a silver medal in the Alicia Alonso competition in Cuba and a silver medal in Brazil. Roles she has performed include Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, Kitri and Mercedes in Don Quixote, and many others. Ms. Tovar most recently danced with the Orlando Ballet under the direction of Bruce Mark.
David Ward
 Carrie West, born in California, received her training with the Sacramento Ballet as well as the San Francisco Ballet School, the School of American Ballet and the Houston Ballet Academy. Prior to joining BalletMet in 1998, she danced exclusively with the Sacramento Ballet. Ms. West's career as a principal dancer consists of many major classical ballets including Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty, Giselle, Odette/Odile in Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, Kitri in Don Quixote and many more. She was also the original Lucy in David Nixon's Dracula and has performed in numerous Balanchine and contemporary works. Ms. West was the recipient of the Violetta Boft Memorial Award for Excellence in 2004.
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