FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date: March 30, 2004
Contact: Tania J. Chichmanian, ARKA Ballet
(301) 587-6225; tjc@arkaballet.org

Washington, DC - ARKA Ballet is pleased to announce that company regular Sona Kharatian is the recipient of a Maryland State Arts Council Individual Artist Award for Solo Dance for the Year 2004. The Maryland State Arts Council (MSAC) Individual Artist Awards are awarded to Maryland artists through an anonymous, competitive process to encourage and sustain their pursuit of artistic excellence. A limited number of awards are offered each year.

Miss Kharatian is a native of Yerevan, Armenia where she studied at the Yerevan Choreographic Academy. She came to the United States in 1993, pursuing her ballet training at the Kirov Academy of Ballet and the Washington School of Ballet in Washington, DC. She is currently in her fourth season with the Washington Ballet. Miss Kharatian has performed with Southern Ballet Theater, and was featured at City Center's Studio 5 and at the Piccolo Spoleto Festival. A frequent guest artist, she has toured with the Kirov Ballet and was one of the dancers chosen to perform in the Kennedy Center's 25th Anniversary Program "Suzanne Farrell Stages Balanchine".

Miss Kharatian is a founding member of the Washington, D.C.-based company ARKA Ballet. Miss Kharatian is an accomplished ballerina who has performed some of the most important classical roles, such as Giselle and Myrtha in the romantic ballet Giselle; Prelude in Les Sylphides; the role of Carlotta Grisi in Pas de Quatre; Sugar Plum Fairy in Nutcracker, and many others. A beautiful dancer with long, graceful lines, Miss Kharatian's repertoire also includes works by such 20th century choreographers as Balanchine, Forsythe, Choo San Goh, McIntyre, Bujones, Vanucchi, Anastos and McCullogh, as well as many works created especially for her by her father, the award-winning choreographer, Roudolf Kharatian.

The award ceremony for the MSAC Individual Artist Awards for the year 2004 will take place later this spring. For more information about Miss Kharatian and ARKA Ballet, please visit our website at http://www.arkaballet.org or contact Tania Chichmanian at (301) 587-6225 or tjc@arkaballet.org # # #

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