Bossov’s The Sleeping Beauty at the Opera House
2010 Summer Intensive

Prince Desire: Stephen Lawrence

The Prince will be danced by Guest Artist Stephen Lawrence, courtesy of St. Louis Ballet, St. Louis, Missouri, where Mr. Lawrence will begin his third consecutive season next fall as a Soloist. He is a home-grown star, a 2004 graduate of Lawrence High School and Bossov-trained from his teen years. We are ecstatic to have him on stage once again in his home state!

Princess Aurora: Johanna Reuter

Johanna trained with Bossov from age twelve and through the spring of 2009 after which she joined Idaho Ballet.

Johanna believes it was the excellent ballet training she received that enabled her to embark on her ballet career path early at age sixteen. Ballet Idaho commented on Johanna’s work ethic and her intelligence as a dancer. She attributes these traits to Bossov. After her summer audition with Ballet Idaho, Johanna stated that she believed it was the corps training at Bossov, especially that received from Natalya Getman, that finally got her the job.

Johanna has participated in more than fourteen full-length productions with Bossov Ballet Theatre, including performing in St. Petersburg, Russia, on Bossov’s bi-annual tour there in “Dance Open”. She stated that these performance opportunities and being coached in the various roles was equally as important as the daily classes.

Understudy for Princess Aurora and Lilac Fairy, Saturday Night: Meg Adams

Meg came to Pittsfield from Atlanta , Georgia, so she could finish her senior year of high school studying with Bossov while attending Maine Central Institute (MCI). A veteran of years of study with Atlanta Ballet, Meg has been a dependable mainstay in Bossov performances ever since, most notably, The Sugar Plum Fairy in the 2009 Bossov Nutcracker. She is “ready in the wings” should she be called upon to dance Aurora, and we are depending on her magnificent portrayal of the wise and beautiful Lilac Fairy on Saturday night. Meg will do a post-graduate year at MCI beginning in the fall of 2010 and will continue to be what she has been: a solid mentor for all the younger girls. We foresee a great professional future for Meg as she goes on the audition trail in the coming spring!

Lilac Fairy: Opening Night, Friday: Caroline Doherty

Sixteen-year-old Caroline Doherty from Granite Bay, California is in Maine for her 3rd successive summer with Bossov Ballet’s 5-week professional training program.

“The Lilac Fairy is a lot like me “ Caroline responded – spontaneously when asked “What are the challenges of your role?”

“She [the Lilac Fairy] is advising, trying to make things happen – hoping to bring out the best in people – to see them making good choices...” Observations of those who have watched Caroline in rehearsal are that what she has to do is be herself – and she will mesmerize her audience.

The great Anna Pavlova was Lilac Fairy in 1908’s The Sleeping Beauty by Russia’s Imperial Ballet. Moira Shearer, the beautiful redhead who starred in ballet’s defining motion picture, The Red Shoes, danced Lilac Fairy in the ballet’s 1949 New York premier, according to some critics, outshining Margot Fonteyn’s portrayal of Aurora.

The Lilac Fairy is indeed a unique figure among fairy-tale ballets. Her presence is felt start-to finish, guiding, forecasting, overcoming the spell of the evil fairy Carabosse, transforming what would have been Princess Aurora’s death into a 100-year slumber, and an awakening to a kiss and happiness ever after. Prince and princess become as two love-struck children in need of a mentor – not an older mentor like Disney’s adaptation in which the fairy Merriweather assumed Lilac’s role, but a young and beautiful one – beautiful and wise. Pavlova performed the role at a youthful twenty-one. Tall and majestic at sixteen, Caroline’s portrayal is authoritative, while young and beautiful as well. She takes command of the stage.

Asked about her future dreams, there is an earnestness in her voice and determination in her eyes: “To dance,” she says, “ as a professional. It is for this reason she spends her summers in Maine with Bossov.