Ben Stevenson

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Ben Stevenson, O.B.E., is a native of Portsmouth, England, along with being a former ballet dancer with Britain's Royal Ballet and English National Ballet, co-director of National Ballet in Washington, D.C. (1971-1975), artistic director of Houston Ballet (1976-2003), and current artistic director of Texas Ballet Theater (2003-present). Stevenson is most noted for his choreography for the La Esmeralda Pas de Deux (1982), which is today a repertory staple with ballet companies all over the world.

Stevenson received his dance training at the Arts Educational School in London. Upon his graduation, Mr. Stevenson was awarded the prestigious Adeline Genee Gold Medal, the highest award give to a dancer by the Royal Academy of Dancing. At the age of eighteen, Mr. Stevenson was invited to join the Sadler's Wells Royal Ballet by Dame Ninette de Valois. A few years later, Sir Anton Dolin invited him to dance with the London Festival Ballet, where, as a principal dancer, he performed leading roles in all the classics.[1]

After choreographing Cinderella in 1970 for the National Ballet in Washington, D.C., he joined the company in 1971 as co-director with Frederick Franklin. That same year, he staged a new production of The Sleeping Beauty in observance of the inaugural season of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.[2]

In 1976, Mr. Stevenson was appointed Artistic Director of the Houston Ballet, which he developed into one of America's leading ballet companies. During his tenure, he expanded the company's repertory by acquiring the works of the world's most respected choreographers, commissioning new works, staging the classics and choreographing original works. In 2003, he was named Director Emeritus of Houston Ballet and the company's academy was renamed the Ben Stevenson Academy.[3]

In 2004, Mr. Stevenson accepted the position of Artistic Director of Texas Ballet Theater in Fort Worth, Texas.[4]

In nature there's no blemish but the mind;
None can be call'd deform'd but the unkind:
Virtue is beauty; but the beauteous-evil
Are empty trunks, o'erflourished by the devil.

Mr. Stevenson has received numerous awards for his choreography, including three gold medals at the International Ballet Competitions of 1972, 1982, and 1986. In addition, he has staged his ballets for the English National Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, the Paris Opera Ballet, La Scala in Milan, the Munich State Opera Ballet, The Joffrey Ballet, London City Ballet, Ballet de Santiago, and for many companies in the United States.[5]

[edit] Notable work

Stevenson choreographed a new version of the La Esmeralda Pas de deux for the dancers Janie Parker and William Pizzuto, who performed it for the first time on July 3, 1982 at the International Ballet Competition in Jackson, Mississippi. Steveson's choregraphy has since become the standard version of this piece, and is a repertory staple with ballet companies around the world.

Another popular repertory which Stevenson rechoreographed is the Harlequinade Pas de deux. His version was first performed at the Varna Ballet Competition in Varna, Bulgaria by the dancers Christine O'Neal and Kirk Peterson on July 10, 1970. It is now danced by many ballet companies, though many opt to perform the traditional russian version.