Washington, DC (May 18, 2007) - ARKA Ballet will present a mix of classical and contemporary ballet at the American Dance Institute in two performances on Saturday, June 2 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, June 3 at 1:30 p.m. The program features new choreography by Jason Hartley, Jonathan Jordan and Roudolf Kharatian, as well as romantic gems of the classical repertoire.

ARKA Ballet’s mission is to nurture, develop and showcase talented dancers and to provide opportunities for choreographic experimentation and development by promising and rising choreographers. Artistic Director Roudolf Kharatian and Associate Artistic Director Jonathan Jordan have put together a program that strives to achieve both.

The evening features three world premieres. Within, set to preludes and fugues from Bach’s The Well Tempered Clavier, is a duet for two men. It was developed as a collaborative choreographic exercise. Following the basic format of a classical pas de deux, the piece opens with a duet created by Roudolf Kharatian, followed by two solo variations by Jason Hartley and Jonathan Jordan, respectively. The first coda is a joint effort by Jordan and Hartley, with the final closing coda by Kharatian. The work will be danced by Jonathan Jordan and Jared Nelson.

The Dance of the Sun and the Moon is a pas de deux that Kharatian created specifically for dancers (and real-life couple) Sona Kharatian and Jonathan Jordan, who will perform the piece. It is set to Armenian popular music, which gives the work a unique character and color. The sun and the moon of the title symbolize the male and female elements. The third premiere, another duet for two men, was created by Jason Hartley. As yet untitled, it is set to the music Asturias (Leyenda) by the composer Albeniz. The work will be danced by Jonathan Jordan and Jared Nelson.

Continuing its tradition of featuring classical works on each program, ARKA Ballet will perform four jewels of the classical repertoire, La Vivandiere, Ocean and The Pearls, The Dying Swan and Le Spectre de la Rose. La Vivandiere Pas de Six, also known as Markitanka or The Canteen Keeper, was choreographed by Arthur Saint-Leon to music by resident Russian Imperial Theater composer Cesar Pugni. The dance was preserved through dance notations devised by Saint-Leon. Created in 1848, this buoyant dance represents dancing of the French School. Saint-Leon, who held posts as principal ballet master at the Paris Opera and the Imperial Ballet in St. Petersburg, among others, is best known for his full length ballet Coppelia. La Vivandiere will feature Brianne Bland and Tyler Savoie as the principle couple.

Ocean and the Pearls is also the work of choreographer Arthur St-Leon. It is the one remaining fragment from St-Leon’s ballet The Little Humpbacked Horse, or The Tsar Maiden, created in 1864. A pas de trois for two women and one man, the music is again by Cesar Pugni. It will be performed by Brianne Bland, Elizabeth Gaither and Corey Landolt.

The Dying Swan, originally titled simply ‘The Swan’, was choreographed by Mikhail Fokine in 1905 as a ‘piece d’occasion’ for the great Anna Pavlova. It is set to a cello solo, the ‘swan’, from Camille Saint Saens’ Carnival des Animaux suite. The swan will be danced by Rui Huang.

Le Spectre de la Rose is a dance poem in one act choreographed by Mikhail Fokine to music by Carl Maria von Weber. It was first performed by Diaghilev's Ballets Russes in 1911 with Tamara Karsavina and Vaslav Nijinsky. The ballet was inspired by a poem by Theophile Gautier, who also provided the inspiration for another timeless classic Giselle. The young girl will be danced by Elizabeth Gaither, with Marcelo Martinez as the spirit of the rose.

Two solo variations from Petipa/Tchaikovsky ballets, Aurora’s variation from Act III of Sleeping Beauty, and the Act III variation from Raymonda, round out the classical selections. They will be performed by Jade Payette and Giselle Alvarez, respectively.

On a more introspective note, Sona Kharatian and Luis Torres will perform a duet excerpted from Roudolf Kharatian’s ballet Bach’s Passion, while Marcelo Martinez will dance the solo A Room, also by Kharatian, to the music of John Cage. Martinez will also present A Room at this year’s New York International Ballet Competition.

For this program, dancers include Brianne Bland, Elizabeth Gaither, Sona Kharatian, Jonathan Jordan, Marcelo Martinez, Jared Nelson, and Luis Torres. Also appearing will be Giselle Alvarez, Liz Gahl, Rui Huang, Jade Payette, Corey Landolt and Tyler Savoie.

Tickets are $35 for adults and $25 for seniors and students and can be purchased at the American Dance Institute box office or by calling 301-984-3003. A ticket order form is also available online at www.americandance.org and www.arkaballet.org. The American Dance Institute, located at 1570 East Jefferson Street, Rockville MD, has free parking and is Metro accessible (Red Line: Twinbrook). For more information, call (301) 587-6225, or e-mail: info@arkaballet.org. ARKA Ballet is a non-profit, 501(c)3 tax-exempt organization.

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