The New York Choreographic Institute has announced the participants for its spring 2003 working session, which will take place from March 3 to 14. The four participants are Melissa Barak, Benjamin Millepied, Theodore Seymour, and Giovanni Villalobos.

In addition, the Institute will present its annual symposium at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, March 18; this year’s topic will be Sir Frederick Ashton.

The New York Choreographic Institute was established in 2000 by New York City Ballet as a center for classical choreography. It was founded by Peter Martins and Irene Diamond, with leadership support from The Irene Diamond Fund and other gifts raised through The Campaign for New York City Ballet. The Institute hosts two annual choreographic sessions, as well as a yearly symposium and other events. Mr. Martins serves as the Institute’s Artistic Director.

Working Session
The spring 2003 working session, which is the fifth, will run from March 3 to 14. This year’s four participants – Melissa Barak, Benjamin Millepied, Theodore Seymour, and Giovanni Villalobos – will be provided with time, studio space, and dancers to help them develop their ideas and works.

The participants were selected from a pool of applicants by the Institute’s artistic staff. During the sessions, the participants will work on their choreographic ideas for several hours a day, will be given opportunities to learn about different aspects of dance production (such as lighting design, costume design, and music), and will visit museum exhibitions, dance performances, or other cultural events that might provide inspiration.

In 2002, the Institute developed a formal relationship with The Juilliard School to give composers and choreographers the experience of collaborating on new work. As part of this program, two of the spring 2003 participants – Ms. Barak and Mr. Millepied – will be working with graduates of Juilliard: John Mackey and Daniel Ott, respectively.

"We give choreographers a supportive place to work, free from the pressures associated with commissions," said Mr. Martins. "We have been pleased with how the Institute has helped new and established choreographers alike develop their skills and vocabulary."

Melissa Barak is a member of the corps de ballet of New York City Ballet. In June 2001, Ms. Barak, who is from Los Angeles, choreographed Telemann Overture Suite in E minor for the School of American Ballet’s Annual Workshop; the ballet then had its NYCB premiere in January 2002. In addition, Ms. Barak’s If by Chance premiered in June 2002 as part of NYCB’s 2002 Diamond Project. Ms. Barak is a recipient of the 2001 Choo-San Goh Award for Choreography.

Benjamin Millepied, who is from Bordeaux, France, is a principal dancer with New York City Ballet. He made his choreographic debut in 2001 with Passages, a work he created for the Conservatoire National in Lyon, France. In September 2002, guest dancers from New York City Ballet performed Triple Duet, choreographed by Mr. Millepied to music by Bach, at Sadler’s Wells in London. Mr. Millepied was a participant in the New York Choreographic Institute in March of 2002.

Theodore Seymour is an advanced student at the School of American Ballet, the official school of NYCB. Mr. Seymour, who is from Chicago, participated in SAB’s 2002 Student Choreography Project.

Giovanni Villalobos is also an advanced student at SAB. He is from Trujillo Alto in Puerto Rico, and choreographed short ballets for SAB’s 2001 and 2002 Student Choreography Projects.

The Institute’s Artistic Advisory Committee, which was established to provide counsel and recommendations for applicants, includes Frank Andersen (Royal Danish Ballet), Reid Anderson (Stuttgart Ballet), David Bintley (Birmingham Royal Ballet), Ricardo Bustamante (Ballet de Santiago), Eliot Feld (Ballet Tech), William Forsythe (Frankfurt Ballet), James Kudelka (National Ballet of Canada), Kevin McKenzie (American Ballet Theatre), Mikko Nissinen (Boston Ballet), Arthur Mitchell (Dance Theatre of Harlem), and Helgi Tomasson (San Francisco Ballet).

Annual Symposium
Each year the New York Choreographic Institute hosts a symposium dedicated to a choreographer who has had a profound impact on the world of dance. This year, the subject of the symposium will be Sir Frederick Ashton (1904-1988). Previous symposiums have focused on August Bournonville and Marius Petitpa. This year’s symposium will be held on Tuesday, March 18, from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Walter Reade Theater at Lincoln Center.

Ashton, who was the director of England’s Royal Ballet from 1963 to 1970, created numerous ballets, including Les Patineurs, Illuminations (for New York City Ballet), Cinderella, Sylvia, Enigma Variations, Romeo and Juliet, and La Fille mal gardée.

Clive Barnes, noted writer and critic, will moderate the discussion. The panel will consist of composer Richard Rodney Bennett, who created the score for Ashton’s Jazz Calendar; Alexander Grant, former Royal Ballet principal dancer; and David Vaughan, author of Frederick Ashton and His Ballets.

To learn more about the Ashton symposium please call 212-870-4060. A limited number of tickets will be available to the general public at no charge on a first-come, first-served basis.

Upcoming Sessions
The fall 2003 session will run from September 29 through October 10, and the spring 2004 session will run from March 1 through 12.

Inquiries from those looking to apply to a future session may be directed to NYChoreoInst@nycballet.com or 212-870-4060.

The creation of the New York Choreographic Institute was made possible by a leadership gift from The Irene Diamond Fund.

Major funding for the Institute’s endowment has been provided by Gillian Attfield & Anne and Thomas Hubbard/Harriet Ford Dickenson Foundation; Agnes Gund and Daniel Shapiro; and Bob and Martha Lipp.

Additional support has been generously contributed by Marie Nugent-Head and James C. Marlas; David and Susan Viniar; Susan and Peter W. Schweitzer; The Howard Gilman Foundation; National Endowment for the Arts; and the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency.