April 4, 2015 | 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Cost:
$12 Child/Student; $23/Adult; $28 limited reserved
Willson Auditorium
404 W. Main., Bozeman, MT 59715 United States

Additional Information

Yellowstone Ballet Company (YBC) presents The Little Mermaid on Saturday, April 4 at 1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. at the newly renovated Willson Auditorium in Bozeman. Kathleen Rakela, YBC Artistic Director and recipient of a prestigious Montana Arts Council Fellowship in the Performing Arts, has created an enchanting multi-media production that will delight all ages, with magical costumes, delightful choreography, sea creatures and projected ocean images. Daniel Parker, former conductor of the Hartford Ballet, composed the compelling score, interwoven with Robert Worobec’s moving narration of the Hans Christian Anderson fairytale (not Disney version).

Three professional guest artists join area dancers from Yellowstone Ballet, The Dance Center and Main Street Dance Theatre: YBC alumni Fiona Lee as the Little Mermaid; and Molly Huempfner as the beautiful Bride who steals the love of the Prince, performed by Randy Herrera. Karen Stengel of Bozeman performs as the Sea Witch.
Former Houston Ballet principal dancer Randy Herrera (Prince) was born in Acapulco, Mexico and raised in Chicago, Illinois. He received a scholarship to The Chicago Academy for the Performing Arts and, after graduating, joined The Joffrey Ballet of Chicago. He has won numerous awards, including fourth place in the International Ballet Competition held in Jackson, Mississippi in 1998, and the Princess Grace Award in 1999. In 2001, Mr. Herrera joined the Houston Ballet as a soloist, and was promoted to principal dancer in 2007. Dazzling audiences worldwide in performances, festivals and workshops, his dancing is characterized by an indescribable “ballon” - the appearance of being lightweight and light-footed while jumping - and equally hypnotic pirouettes.

The title role of the “Little Mermaid” will be danced by 14 year-old Fiona Lee. Fiona trained at Yellowstone Ballet School for nine years and attended the American Ballet Theatre Young Dancer Workshop in 2012 and American Ballet Theatre New York Intensive in 2013. Last summer she attended the School of American Ballet (SAB) intensive on full scholarship, one of the most selective ballet summer programs in the country. After completing the intensive, Miss Lee was invited by faculty to stay and train at the school in their year-round program – the first female from Montana to be invited. SAB, founded in 1934 by George Balanchine, is one of the most prestigious schools in the world and is the associate school of New York City Ballet. Miss Lee has been given special permission from SAB administration to return to Montana to dance the leading role in this production. This summer she will attend the Pacific Northwest Ballet intensive on full scholarship.

Main Street Dance Theatre alumna currently dancing with Colorado Ballet, Molly Huempfner (Bride) has a BFA in Ballet Performance from University of Utah. She was one of three dancers selected to perform with Ballet West by artistic director Adam Sklute while completing her degree with the University of Utah. She spent last year dancing with the Milwaukee Ballet II before joining the trainee program with the Colorado Ballet Company.

YBC Alumna currently dancing with Main Street Dance Theatre, Karen Stengel (Sea Witch) has studied classical and contemporary ballet, lyrical, jazz and modern for over 13 years, including summer dance intensives with the Ajkun Ballet (NYC), Ballet Montana (Helena) and Ballet Magnificat (Jackson, MS).

Every child who attends The Little Mermaid will receive a complimentary stuffed dolphin, stuffed sea horse or seashell. After the performance, parents may take pictures of their child in a Little Nemo costume or starfish costume with the little mermaid and various sea creatures. CD’s signed by the composer of The Little Mermaid audio book will be on sale at the event.

The Little Mermaid is sponsored in part by a grant from the Montana Cultural Trust and matching grants from KBOZ and the Bozeman Daily Chronicle.

General seating tickets for The Little Mermaid are $12 Child/Student and $23 for Adult. A limited number of premiere Child/Adult reserved seats are available for $28. Tickets may be purchased online at www.yellowstoneballet.org, or at Eckroth Music in Bozeman and Conley’s Books & Music in Livingston. For more information or group rates, email yellowstoneballet@gmail.com. A $2 processing fee will be added to tickets purchased on the day of show.