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HISTORY OF THE BALLET ALLIANCE
In 1966 a group of ballet studio owners and trailblazers formed the Pacific Western Regional Ballet Festival Association and joined the National Association for Regional Ballet (NARB). NARB was established in 1956 to decentralize dance, and, under its auspices, regional companies grew in stature and quality nationwide. The first Festival our Pacific organization was hosted by Deane and Barbara Crockett of the Sacramento Civic Ballet, with Doris Hering as the first adjudicator. Six companies performed at that first festival: Laguna Beach Civic Ballet, Cairns Dance Group, Peninsula Ballet Theatre, Dorothy Fisher Concert Dancers, Sacramento Civic Ballet and Concert Ballet Group of Tacoma.
By 1975 NARB had grown to five regions and over 200 companies, including more than two dozen nationally recognized professional groups, and the Pacific Western Regional Ballet Festival Association simplified its name to Pacific Regional Ballet Association (PRBA). The group of PRBA ballet schools and pre-professional companies encompassed the region of western states, including Washington, Oregon, California, Utah, Nevada, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Arizona, Hawaii and Alaska.
In 1988 Regional Dance America (RDA) was founded to continue the work of NARB and promote the artistic development of dance companies throughout the United States.
In 1989, and in conjunction with NARB renaming itself RDA, PRBA changed its name to Regional Dance America/Pacific.
Over time, the dance landscape evolved, and so did RDA/Pacific. By the early 2000’s it became more and more clear that a new vision was needed to reflect the changing needs of the member companies.
In 2019 the directors of RDA/Pacific decided to part from the oversight of RDA and changed the organization’s name to The Ballet Alliance. This fresh start symbolized a deeper commitment to artistic excellence, ongoing education and community engagement. The Ballet Alliance took steps to expand its reach, maintaining a standard for classical ballet while still embracing contemporary and experimental works. The Ballet Alliance member companies value rigorous training methods, innovative choreography, and the professional development of our artistic directors, which ultimately benefit the education of our dancers. We invest in the education and mentorship of our students and emerging choreographers. Our member Artistic Directors cooperate each spring to host an annual Festival where our dancers take masterclasses, perform, and forge new relationships and where member directors attend professional development seminars and network with master teachers, recruiters, and choreographers. Our members ensure that scholarships to world-class ballet schools, contracts to professional companies and acceptance to prestigious college and university dance programs will continue to be available to our dancers at each Festival. Ongoing education is valued through the entire year between the annual Festivals, and the companies support, mentor and inspire each other.
Photo from the first Festival
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The Ballet Alliance
Honoring Past and Present Luminaries and Champions
Lt. Col. Fred Shadle
Lt. Col. Fred Shadle selflessly volunteered his time to all manner of arts organizations. He served the Pacific Region of Regional Dance America for many, many years as Historian, attending every Festival (by car) with his beloved wife Jean. He was our advocate and adored the hard work of all of the dancers, encouraging the success of each of them. Col. Fred volunteered for Sacramento Ballet (a founding company of our region) for decades. In his later years, he would be the first person in the theater, making coffee and filling water bottles. Every ballerina who was ever presented flowers by the distinguished Colonel will never forget that thrill.
Lila Zali
Born Elisaveta Borisova Zalipskaya in Tblisi, Russia, Lila Zali came to the United States in 1921 at the age of three. During World War II, she organized a trio of dancers, including her good friend Barbara Stuart, called "The Three Debs," to do a USO tour. When she returned to New York, she starred in a weekly CBS television show called "Balleretta." She later was principal dancer of another weekly ballet program called "The Don Lee Show." Lila starred in many movies, including "An American in Paris" (in which she was Leslie Caron's stand-in), "Limelight" with Charlie Chaplin, "Daddy Long Legs," "Gaby," "Anything Goes," "Silk Stockings" and "The Ten Commandments." She also appeared on "The Colgate Comedy Hour" with Harpo Marx and Tony Martin. Her ballet teacher during this time was Imperial Russian Ballet star Adolph Bolm, whom she also taught for. In addition, she taught at the studio of Michel Panaieff, which included her most famous student, a young Cynthia Gregory. Lila opened her own dance studio in 1959, and founded a small ballet company called Laguna Beach Civic Ballet, which later became Ballet Pacifica. Under her direction, the company evolved into a semi-professional group, performing 60-70 times per year. She served as director, choreographer, costume maker, fundraiser, and many other roles until 1988. Lila served on the board of the National Association of Regional Ballet — which later became Regional Dance America — for many years, including serving as president.
Patricia Stander
Patricia Stander trained in Rhodesia and England at the Royal Ballet School and was a graduate of the Royal College of Music and the Royal Academy of Music L.R.A.M. She danced with the Royal Ballet, London Festival Ballet and Roland Petit. Her own illustrious career as a dancer led to a second equally notable career as teacher and coach. She also worked in film. Ms. Stander served RDA/P for many years as Artistic Director of Dance Peninsula Ballet.
Deborah Hadley
Deborah Hadley began her professional career as a charter member of Joffrey II. She took time off to marry and have two boys, returning to her career ten years later with Pacific Northwest Ballet. Her thirteen years as a principal dancer with PNB were distinguished by dancing virtually every leading role in the classical and Balanchine repertoire. She also appeared as a guest artist with the Kozlovs and Stars, Godonov and Stars, and in the title role of “Giselle” with Anthony Dowell, in addition to many companies across the United States.Upon retiring from her PNB performing career, Ms. Hadley founded the Washington Academy of Performing Arts in Redmonds, WA and directed it for five years. Following some years as Ballet Mistress of the Fort Worth Dallas Ballet, she returned to the Pacific Northwest to teach, coach and stage ballets. Ms. Hadley has served as Adjudicator for several RDA regions, most often the Pacific, and has been instrumental in helping The Ballet Alliance create its artistic standards. She most recently served TBA as an Emerging Choreography mentor and on faculty at the 2023 Festival.
Charles Maple
Charles Maple trained with Evelyn LeMone at Pasadena Dance Theatre and at the School of American Ballet. He had a career with American Ballet Theatre for several years before joining Basel Ballet in Switzerland as a principal dancer. Charles worked with such choreographers as George Balanchine, Antony Tudor, Agnes De Mille, Jerome Robbins, Twyla Tharp, Paul Taylor, Jirí Kylián, Mikhail Baryshnikov, William Forsythe, Natalia Makarova, Erik Bruhn and Nacho Duato. He is a prolific choreographer, teacher and coach. He founded the Maple Conservatory of Dance, which he directed for 20 years. Currently, Charles is pleased to partner with and support The Ballet Alliance and in its education and development of talented young dancers pursuing careers in the field.
Doris Jenkins
Backed with a degree in Zoology from UC Berkeley and following a career as a chemist at Stanford Medical School, Doris Jenkins volunteered with the Mill Valley Creative Dance Group, eventually becoming business manager of Dick Ford Dance. She was active in local ballet organizations and Regional Dance America, and for years was National Chairman of its Craft of Choreography Conferences. Her leadership of that conference helps establish the foundation of our current Emerging Choreography mentorship program.
Clare Porter
Clare Porter devoted her life to the world of Dance, predominately ballet. She joined the San Francisco Opera ballet the year of its inception, and later with the Paris Opera Ballet. She founded the Fresno Dance Repertory Association which consisted of three separate dance companies, one of which was the Fresno Civic Ballet. In 1966 she was one of the originators of the Pacific Western Regional Ballet Festival Association. She maintained very high production values. There is now an active dance community in Fresno because of Ms. Clare Porter.
Robert Hanlin
Robert Hanlin performed with American Ballet Theatre, San Francisco Ballet and in broadway musicals, film and television. He and his wife Carole founded Goleta Civic Ballet in 1968 and joined Regional Dance America/Pacific in 1975. Goleta Civic Ballet supported the regional ballet movement through their membership for so many years, eventually becoming Santa Barbara Festival Ballet.
Doris Hering
Doris Hering was a charter member of the board of directors of the predecessor of The Ballet Alliance, the National Association of Regional Ballet. She served as RDA/Pacific’s first Adjudicator. She continued to lead the regional dance movement in these capacities, including as president of the national office. She has received the Capezio Dance Award, was inducted into the Hunter College Alumni Hall of Fame and was given the Dance Magazine Award.
Ms. Hering was a freelance write and senior editor of Dance Magazine. She served on the Dance panel of the New York State Council of the Arts. She wrote two books: “25 Years of American Dance,” which she edited, and “Giselle & Albrecht: American Ballet Theater’s Romantic Lovers.” She is listed in Who's Who of American Women and Who's Who in Entertainment.
Barbara Crockett
Barbara Crockett was a founding director of the Pacific Western Regional Ballet Festival Association, which after several name changes evolved into The Ballet Alliance. She was the founder of the Sacramento Ballet and her own school, Crockett Dance Studio. It is through her vision and guidance that The Ballet Alliance exists today. We strive to realize our mission: To raise the standards of American ballet through education, performance, and community engagement. It is her trailblazing footsteps we walk in, and we will always be thankful for her leadership and foresight.
Nicholas Ade
Nicholas Ade is a champion of The Ballet Alliance. He danced with Pacific Northwest Ballet for ten years before embarking on his teaching career. He was made Principal of PNB’s Francia Russel School, and led the faculty for several years before moving to Pennsylvania to serve on the faculty of Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet. Nicholas has been CEO of CPYB since 2014, where he oversees operations and collaborates with artistic staff. He has taught at festivals, served as an Adjudicator, and is currently an Ambassador and a Festival Artistic Director for The Ballet Alliance.
Glenda Brown
Glenda Brown co-owned Allegro Academy of Dance and directed Allegro Ballet of Houston for many years. She was a founding member of Regional Dance America and a leader in the Southwest Region. She established the Glenda Brown Choreography Project, sponsoring hundreds of young dancers and choreographers to attend. In 1996, Glenda and her daughter Vanessa joined the staff of Young!Tanzsommer, a summer dance intensive in Austria. That project became Stars of Tomorrow and has hosted thousands of dancers through the years. Glenda’s dedication to the regional ballet movement is felt today by The Ballet Alliance, as her influence has affected our policies and goals for the development of our dancers and young choreographers.
Josephine Schwarz
Josephine Schwarz is the founder of Dayton Ballet. Miss Jo, as she was known in the dance world, began her dance training at 8 years of age, initially as physical therapy following a bout with the mumps. Her therapy became a passion by age 14. After her father's business went bankrupt, Miss Jo began teaching to raise money for her lessons. She also danced with Ruth Page's Ravinia Opera Ballet while in high school. In 1927 she and her sister started the Schwarz School of Dance. Ten years later they founded the Experimental Group for Young Dancers. Eventually the dance company became known as the Dayton Ballet. The Dayton Ballet is one of the oldest regional companies in the United States. Miss Jo fell in love with modern dance after witnessing a moving performance by the German modern dancers, Yvonne Georgi and Harold Kreutzberg. She went to Germany and Austria to study modern dance with Mary Wigman and her disciples. From there, Miss Jo went to New York City to work with Charles Weidmann and Doris Humphrey. She returned to teach with Miss Hermene in 1937 after a knee injury ended her professional dance career. They taught ballet and modern dance, which was unheard of at the time. Miss Jo taught and choreographed for the Schwarz School and Dayton Ballet for over 30 years and continued as an administrator until her retirement in 1984.
Evelyn LeMone
Evelyn LeMone’s first love was Dance. Years of training from repeated trips to Los Angeles on the "Red Line" to study with the top teachers of the time, lead to her career as a noted performer, master teacher, choreographer, the owner of LeMone Ballet Center and the artistic director of Pasadena Junior Ballet Company which evolved into Pasadena Dance Theatre, a member company of the Pacific Regional Ballet of which she was a founding member. With her eclectic training in all forms of dance, she evolved her own "Free Style Ballet" form, which lead her to be the President of the largest dance teachers association in America, and to a professorship at the Pasadena Playhouse College of Theatre Arts. Besides the thousands of dance teachers across the nation who taught her lyric style, hundreds of actors were inspired to emulate her grace on the stage, and many of her dance students went on to careers as lead dancers with ballet companies; also movies, television, stage work and as teachers, some of whom now own their own schools and others as heads of dance departments in colleges.
Jon Cristofori
Jon Cristofori spent his high school summers at the renown dance festival Jacob’s Pillow under the tutelage of Ted Shawn. He continued his dance training with the National Ballet of Washington, quickly becoming an apprentice with the professional company. A year later he joined the Joffrey Ballet in NYC. Hard floors, touring on buses and the relentless choreographic challenges of Arpino ballets forced Jon from the professional stage in the early 70’s; but his passion for the dance did not die. Instead, it transferred to developing young artists in the classroom and on stage. Relocating to Arizona set the stage for Jon to inhabit his ultimate career as guide and mentor, earning him the nickname “The Maestro.” Jon has trained countless dancers, choreographers and teachers over his career. Directing Ballet Yuma with his wife Kathleen Sinclair surely brought him the greatest joy and his students maximum rewards.
Lenore Farese
Raised by parents who were patrons of the arts, Lenore Farese acquired a passion for beauty in the arts early, especially for ballet. She was a driving force within the Houston Ballet, part of the Founder’s Circle, served as President and had a wonderful relationship with many of the artists within the company. She had a long relationship with Ballet Yuma as an active board member, supporter and donor. Lenore supported the development of Emerging Choreographers with annual donations to Regional Dance America/Pacific that sponsored both choreographers and dancers.