South Shore Ballet Theatre Annual Gala
June 15, 2:00 p.m. at Thayer Academy
Performance Honors Ballet Great Nan Keating
More than 100 of the South Shore’s most talented ballet students will perform in the 11th Annual SSBT Gala, Saturday, June 15, at the Hale Theatre Thayer Academy, 745 Washington Street, Braintree, MA 02184
Hingham will be proudly represented by dancers Shauna Arseneau, Elena Chamberlain, Lilian Chamberlain, Fergus Chesney-Douglas, Catherine Delorie, Alessia Demika, Ava Green, Sydney Hemmer, Isabella Lovett, Elizabeth McKinell, Daisy Mohamed, Tala Sanford, Olivia Robinson and Veronica Ruth.
This year’s performance will honor one of the Boston area’s most legendary ballet teachers, SSBT’s own Nan Keating.
After a career as a ballet dancer touring with the American Ballet Theatre, Nan Keating in 1972 founded the Boston Children’s ballet workshop, which would go on to be the Boston Ballet School, of which she was principal of the South Shore studio until joining South Shore Ballet Theatre.
SSBT was founded in 2008 by Marthavan McKeon. Ms. Keating brought to SSBT an energetic approach to the Vaganova-based curriculum, and was noted for instilling in her students a positive attitude, musicality and the love and joy of dancing. Ms. Keating was a working ballet teacher until her death last fall at the age of 77.
This year’s Gala will feature work by Nan Keating including original choreography and costumes from her adaptation of Graduation Ball, a one-act ballet set to music by Johann Strauss, II. The ballet is set in 1840’s Vienna and features a series of divertissements, or short dances featuring a perfected technical skill.
“Graduation Ball is an excellent ballet for new audiences as well as people already familiar with ballet,” Mrs. McKeon said. “Ms. Keating’s adaptation allows us to showcase an array of talents and skills in a fast-paced and entertaining way, set, of course, to the beautiful score byStrauss.”
“We hope to provide ballet lovers and families a venue in which to see excellent ballet from rising students in their own community,” McKeon added.
Tickets are $20 and may be purchased at: www.tututickets.com or at the door, if available.
South Shore Ballet Theatre's mission is to provide pre-professional and recreational ballet training in a nurturing environment to dancers of all ages on the South Shore. SSBT students have been accepted to, and attended prestigious summer intensive programs across the United States like American Ballet Theatre, Ellison Ballet, School of American Ballet, Alvin Ailey, Ballet Rampart, Royal Ballet School (London), Paris Opera Ballet School (summer program Paris, France), Houston Ballet Academy, Gelsey Kirkland Academy of Classical Ballet, North Carolina School for the Arts, Kirov Academy, Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, Next Generation, Washington Ballet, and Miami City Ballet. Graduates of SSBT have gone on to professional careers with Sarasota Ballet, Columbia Classical Ballet, Festival Ballet Providence, and City Ballet of Boston in addition to musical theatre careers with the Broadway production of “Phantom of the Opera”.