Carlos Fittante is a dance artist of remarkable diversity who specializes in Balinese and Baroque dance. He is a graduate of the School of American Ballet and has a BA in Dance from Empire State College (SUNY). He studied with ballet master Benjamin Harkarvy who created two ballets on him while dancing with the New American Ballet Ensemble. Other ballet credits include New York Theatre Ballet, Metropolitan Opera Ballet, and the Universal Ballet Company in Seoul, Korea. Since 1990, he has been the artistic director of BALAM Dance Theatre, a contemporary dance company inspired by Balinese theatre and founded by Islene Pinder. He has performed internationally and studied extensively in Bali and Indonesia. As a Baroque dance specialist he has been featured in a number of Baroque operas including soloist roles for New York City Opera’s production of Rinaldo, and the Boston Early Music Festival’s production of Thesée. He danced principal roles with the New York Baroque Dance Company during the period of 1989-2002 and also served as rehearsal director. His choreographic work in East/West fusion, contemporary, and baroque styles has been presented at a number of New York festivals and venues including DUMBO Dance Festival, COOL Festival, and Lincoln Center Out-of-Doors. He teaches Mask & Gesture at the Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute and Balinese and Baroque dance at Peridance Center in New York.

ROBIN GILBERT CAMPOS
Guest Artist

Robin Gilbert Campos began her dance training in Cleveland, Ohio and later graduated from North Carolina School of the Arts. Her career includes the ballet companies Connecticut Ballet Theatre, Dallas Ballet, Dance Theatre of Westchester, and Anglo-American Ballet where she was featured in the roles of Aurora in Sleeping Beauty, and the Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker. She has also danced in musical theatre, industrial shows, opera, commercials, videos, and has worked with Peter Pucci Plus Dancers, and choreographers Ann Reinking, Lila York, and Arthur Faria. In 1991, she danced with Carrie Diamond’s New American Ballet Ensemble, and shortly after became a company member of BALAM where she pioneered the role, Raka Froggy in Animal Wedding in which she danced in a wooden Balinese mask en pointe! In her non-dance life Robin is married to her wonderful husband Manny, and is a drummer/vocalist in his Rock band, The Generators.

COLLEEN BIALAS

Colleen Bialas is originally from Muskegon, MI where she trained with Julie Powell and Jefferson Baum. She graduated from Interlochen Arts Academy and continued dancing in Virginia with the Richmond Ballet as a trainee for two years. Locally, she has performed with SonneBlauma Danscz Theatre and the State Street Ballet in such productions as The Nutcracker, the China tour of Beauty and the Beast and Giselle. Outside of dance she enjoys theatre where she has performed with Muskegon Civic Theatre and The Cherry County Playhouse. She recently completed her Associate Degree in Biology at Santa Barbara City College.

JULIANA BERTELSEN
Guest Artist

A native of Santa Barbara, Juliana Bertelsen began her studies at the Santa Barbara Ballet Center. She also studied at the School of American Ballet in New York, the Houston Ballet Academy in Texas, and the Hartford Ballet summer program in Connecticut, finishing her training on full scholarship at the Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington D.C. Professionally, Juliana has danced with the Hartford Ballet, Ballet Iowa, Ballet Memphis, the State Street Ballet, Festival Ballet of Rhode Island, and the Universal Ballet in South Korea. She has danced with the Kirov Ballet on a national and international tour and with the Universal Ballet to numerous countries in Europe, as well as Korea, and the USA and Canada, and most recently with the American National Ballet. An emerging choreographer, she recently created a new summer production entitled "Over the Top" incorporating the artists of the American National Ballet and Minnesota Ballet.

EDUARDO CUETO

Eduardo Cueto began his dance training in 1986 with choreographer and teacher Rikki Lugo from Jazz Etc. There he trained in jazz, modern, tap, spanish, and classical ballet. He continued his studies with Lois Ellyn in Fullerton and then David Wilcox of the Long Beach Ballet, later called the Los Angeles Classical Ballet. From 1988 to 1994 he worked for the Los Angeles Classical Ballet and danced principal roles in Petruschka, Romeo and Juliet, The Nutcracker, David Allan’s On Occasion and Etc!, Marie D’Angelo’s The Unicorn, and Aymara by Helen Coop. He also danced with the Los Angeles Ensemble Ballet, Los Angeles City Ballet, California Ballet, Francisco Martinez Contemporary Ballet, and Ballet Pacifica in Irvine. In 1995, he danced for the Hamburg Ballet, training with Kevin Hagen and Irena Jacobson and dancing roles in John Neumeier’s Requiem, Vivaldi: Or What You Will, Odyssey, St. Mathew’s Passion, and Mats Ek’s modern version of Sleeping Beauty. In 1998, Eduardo guested with Alonzo King’s Lines Contemporary Ballet at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco. Then in 1999, he stopped dancing and for over six years turned his creative attention to writing, photography, and filmmaking. Ballet Santa Barbara's debut performances represented Eduardo's homecoming back to dance. In Santa Barbara, he was also a member of Santa Barbara Dance Theatre in addition to BSB.

DAVID ECK

David Eck, a native of Santa Barbara, began studying ballet at 10 years of age. He attended summer dance programs at San Francisco Ballet, Houston Ballet, Dance Aspen, and Ecole Superieure de Danse de Cannes with Rosella Hightower. Mr. Eck joined the Royal Winnipeg Ballet Company in 2001 as a member of the corps and performed in Giselle, Nutcracker, Swan Lake, Norbert Vesak's The Ecstasy of Rita Joe, Mark Godden's Miroirs, the Canadian premiere of Mauricio Wainrot's Carmina Burana, and was featured in Sleeping Beauty as Puss in Boots. He performed the lead in Macbeth with North Carolina DanceTheatre. In 2005, David joined State Street Ballet and performed in Rodney Gustafson's Bolero, Cinderella, and Midsummer Night's Dream, Bill Soleau's Carmen, and was featured in a new work called Nous Sommes.

DAVID FONNEGRA

David Fonnegra was born in Venezuela and was a principal dancer for the Ballet de Caracas directed by the legendary choreographer, Vincente Nebrada. After seeing him perform on tour, Mr. Fonnegra was invited by Edward Villella to join the Miami City Ballet. During his tenure, he appeared in principal roles in ballets such as Romeo and Juliet and Don Quixote. Mr. Fonnegra joined State Street Ballet in Santa Barbara for their 2002-03 Season and appeared in principal roles in Taming of the Shrew, Hollywood Nutcracker, and Romeo and Juliet. In 2004, Mr. Fonnegra joined Diablo Ballet, where he has been featured in The Legend of Taj Mahal, Petrushka, They’ve Lost Their Footing and Who Cares?

FELICIA GUZMAN

Felicia Guzman was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas where she trained at the Vladimir Marek Ballet Academy under Vladimir Marek and Nancy Smith. As a member of the San Antonio Ballet Junior Company, she danced roles in Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake, and Giselle. She also appeared in Ballet West’s local productions of The Nutcracker. After receiving a Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from MIT, Felicia relocated to Southern California where she continued her training at Anna Cheselka Dance Center and most recently at Media Dance Centre. As a Soloist with Media City Ballet, Felicia has danced the roles of Icicles and Chinese from The Nutcracker and Carmen in the Carmen Pas de Deux. Felicia has recently danced with Ballet Santa Barbara in Sueños Castellanos in Media City Ballet's Noche de Sabor.

NICOLE HELTON

Nicole Helton received her early ballet training from Christine Fossemalle in Santa Ynez While in college, Nicole discovered her love for contemporary and post modern dance. She received her B.F.A. in dance from UC Santa Barbara in 2006. While attending UCSB she had the privilege of working with many renowned artists including Robert Battle, Alonzo King,Doug Elkins, and members of the Lyon Opera Ballet, Australian Dance Theatre, and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater among others. As a choreographer, she created a commissioned work for the Daughter of Zion Dance Company performed in Greece in 2007.

AIMEE LOPEZ

Aimee Lopez is a Santa Barbara native. She was trained locally at the Santa Barbara Ballet Center under the instruction of Michelle Pearson and Denise Rinaldi. She was a soloist with their pre-professional company, the Santa Barbara Festival Ballet, for many years. Upon graduating from Dos Pueblos High School in 1999, she was accepted into Pennsylvania Ballet's Rock School summer intensive. After taking a brief vacation from dance, she rediscovered her love for performing during this holiday season when she returned to the Festival Ballet as a guest artist in their production of The Nutcracker. Most recently, she has began studying with Ms. Rinaldi for the Cechetti method examinations in hopes of not only improving as a dancer, but also to further her understanding of classical ballet and its history.

RACHEL MANN

Rachel Mann began studying ballet at age four and received the majority of her early training from Celia Dale at the Hayden School of Ballet in Albuquerque, NM. She attended summer programs at Marin Dance Theatre, Ballet West Conservatory, and the Washington School of Ballet before receiving a BFA in Ballet from the University of Utah, where she studied with Sharee Lane and Conrad Ludlow. She has performed with Ballet Theatre of New Mexico, Albuquerque Children's Theater, the Character Dance Ensemble, and Utah Ballet. Her roles include solos in Tchaikovsky Celebration, Paquita, The Fairy Doll, The Nutcracker, Carmen, Alice in Wonderland, and Songs of the Auvergne, as well as ensemble work in A Midsummer Night's Dream and The Snow Queen. She is currently working on a Ph.D. in English at UC Santa Barbara.

THOMAS MCDONNELL

Thomas McDonnell was born and raised in San Francisco. He studied commercial art and played high school basketball for four years, graduating with Honors. He attended San Francisco City College, the Academy of Art College of San Francisco, and NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. Thomas started dancing seriously at the age of nineteen at the San Francisco Ballet School and at the Pennsylvania Academy of Ballet. He danced professionally with the Empire State Ballet Company in Buffalo, New York, Ballet Omaha, Minnesota Dance Theatre, Santa Barbara Festival Ballet, State Street Ballet School, the Robert Henry Johnson Dance Company, and the Oakland Ballet. He is currently a member of the Santa Barbara Dance Theatre. Thomas loves to teach, choreograph, paint, draw, and ride motorcycles. He was married in May, 2005 and is now the proud father of a beautiful baby girl.

IAN VINCENT MCGINNIS

Ian Vincent McGinnis began dancing with Dimension Dance Co. in Oakland, California. He studied with the Garth Fagan Dance Co. in New York, then returned home to the West Coast to dance for the Oberlin Dance Collective and the Robert Henry Johnson Dance Company of San Frascisco, as well as Santa Barbara Dance Theatre. In 2000, Ian joined Disney's The Lion King (Los Angeles) and from 2002 to 2006 performed in The Lion King on Broadway (NYC).

SAM MITCHELL

Sam Mitchell, in addition to numerous appearances with local dance companies, has danced with Santa Barbara Dance Theatre for five years, working with choreographers such as Christopher Pilafian, Jerry Pearson, Nancy Colahan, Doug Elkins,Christina McCarthy, and Stephanie Gilliland. He has had the good fortune to perform in Bologna, Prague, New York, Washington, D.C., and San Francisco. He looks forward to collaborating with his wife, Judy Bauerlein, making dance theater pieces for the people.

ELLEN O'CONNELL

Ellen O’Connell, a graduate of UCSB, began her early training age six in the Royal Ballet School in London, England, where she began her Royal Academy of Dance training and grade exams. Two years later she began dancing at the Santa Barbara Ballet Center, under the guidance of Michele Hulse Pearson and Denise Rinaldi. She continued her RAD exams until Advanced 1, earning marks of distinction and highly commended on several of them. With Santa Barbara Festival Ballet she danced in ten Nutcrackers, with solos including Clara, Candy Cane, and Dew Drop. Her solos in other ballets include Paquita and Cupid in Don Quixote, as well as On the Banks of Helicon by Carrie Diamond. In Summer 2003 she attended Walnut Hill in Boston and participated in their summer intensive program. Ellen was accepted at UC Irvine’s reputable dance program with an emphasis in ballet in Fall 2004. Under UC Irvine’s program she was privileged to dance and perform with such greats as David Allen, Leslie Peck, and Donald McKayle. She transferred to UCSB for Winter 2006 where she was a double major in literature and French.

JEKYNS PELAEZ

Jekyns Pelaez began his studies at Incolballet in his birthplace of Cali, Colombia. He danced with Ballet De Cali, Ballet Arizona, Chautauqua Ballet, Ohio Ballet, Ballet San Jose Silicon Valley and others before joining Diablo Ballet. He has also toured extensively throughout the United States, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Cuba (XIII Festival de Ballet de la Habana), and appeared at the International Children’s Festival. His repertoire includes The Nutcracker, Carmen,Cinderella, Lilac Garden, Rodeo, Giselle, Don Quixote, Carmina Burana, Serenade, La Fille Mal Gardee, Coppelia, Swan Lake, Romeo and Juliet, Flames of Paris, Napoli, Le Corsaire, Esplanade, and Hymn for Her. Mr. Pelaez appeared as a non-competing partner at the 2006 International Ballet Competition in Jackson, Mississippi. His website is www.jekyns.com

CHRISTINA SANCHEZ

Christina Sanchez has relocated to Santa Barbara this past year after sixteen years in New York City. She attended the San Francisco School of the Arts and later decided to continue her dance education in NYC, where she received training on scholarship at the Alvin Ailey School. She has had the privilege of being a member of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater as well as Ailey II. It was there that she performed the works of such noted choreographers such as Alvin Ailey, Judith Jamison, Ron Brown, Donald Byrd, Bill T. Jones, Lar Lubovitch, Barry Martin, Earl Mosley, Kevin Wynn, and Shapiro and Smith among others. She has also danced with Ballet Hispanico, Buglisi/Foreman Dance, and most recently with Complexions Contemporary Ballet under the direction of Dwight Rhoden and Desmond Richardson.

DANIEL WHITEHEAD

Born and raised in West Texas, Daniel Whitehead began studying jazz dancing at Catherine's Dance School in San Angelo. Three years ago, he began ballet training under Brynar Mehl. In 2002, he moved to Deluth to study at the School of the Minnesota Ballet and finish his last year of high school. After dancing as an apprentice in the 2003-2004 season, he was promoted to company member, performing in The Nutcracker to critical acclaim.

DENISE WOODS

Denise Woods, a native of southern California, received her B.A. in Communications and minor in Dance as an honorable mention undergraduate from Cal State University of Long Beach. Extensively studying ballet and various forms of dance for over 15 years, Denise’s training began at California Dance Theatre with Kim Masseli and Stanley Holden, then later returning as guest artist in their Pacific Festival Ballet Theatre and on to be featured in classical and contemporary work at the Cal State Long Beach Dance Department with Alaine Haubert and Sophie Monat-Gaydos, with the Long Beach Ballet Theatre under mentor and teacher David Wilcox, and as a State Street Ballet scholarship student performing Without Walls by Bill Soleau. In New York, she danced in Peter and the Wolf in Avery Fischer Hall, as well as What is Hip? for choreographer Lonne Moretton in Ballet Builders.

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