Celebrate 50 years of dance with New Mexico Ballet Company!

Bridging the divide between classical and contemporary, RESILIENCE celebrates the New Mexico Ballet Company's 50 year history of dancing with the community. Enjoy a diverse program of six works showcasing the artistry and talent of the company's past, present, and future. Premiers will include Andamento, the first installment of an ongoing collaboration with Oregon-based mosaic artist Kate Kerrigan, and excerpts of The Great Gatsby, a new ballet for NMBC by Kelly Ruggiero. Revisit the company's early years with Rhapsody, choreographed by founder Suzanne M. Johnston, and excerpts of the classical favorite Paquita. The program also features Quatro (premier) and Resilience (2022) by Vladimir Conde Reche. Tickets available now for purchase.

Saturday, May 6 & Sunday, May 7, 2023

National Hispanic Cultural Center

Purchase tickets for Saturday, May 6th, 2023 at 7:00pm

Purchase tickets for Sunday, May 7th, 2023 at 2:00pm

Tickets available for $15, $25 and $35. Discounts available on select ticket prices.

About the Program

Andamento (excerpts) – Anna Bridge and Stephanie Karr, premier

Andamento is a collaboration-in-progress between NMBC and mosaic artist Kate Kerrigan, inspired by her mosaic entitled “Piecing Us Together.” Setting out on July 1, 2021, Ms. Kerrigan drove 25,000 miles across the country in her Subaru, for a total of seven months, using art as a way to connect with family and friends in 38 states. In all, a total of 552 people participated to create a large-scale mosaic. “It is about connection, re-connection, relationships, human touch, unity, inclusion, contribution and collaboration at a time we all need, all through art. If I have learned anything from this unrivaled time in our collective history, it is how much we need each other and the importance of in-person relationships,” says Kerrigan. “Andamento” as an art term describes the flow and movement of lines in a mosaic resulting from the choices made by the artist. Andamento is a choreographic exploration of human connection through collaboration between choreographers and dancers inspired by Ms. Kerrigan's work. Read more about Kate Kerrigan’s work here.

The Great Gatsby (excerpts) – Kelly Ruggiero, premier

The Great Gatsby, based on Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald’s novel and choreographed by Kelly Ruggiero, features music by Gershwin, Rachmaninoff, Gottschalk, and Khatchaturian. From scenes of Nick Carraway’s arrival in bustling Long Island, to an emotional meeting between Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan, to a lavish and exorbitant party, audiences will be transported back in time to the roaring 1920s.

Rhapsody – Suzanne M. Johnston, 1974

Rhapsody, choreographed by NMBC Founder Suzanne M. Johnston, features Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. Restaged by company dancers Stephanie Karr and Kira Petersen, NMBC is excited to present this piece of company history in honor of Ms. Suzanne's legacy and in celebration of NMBC’s 50th anniversary.

Resilience – Vladimir Conde Reche, 2022

Quatro – Vladimir Conde Reche, premier

Paquita – excerpts staged by Anna Bridge

About the Choreographers

Anna Bridge, Artistic & School Director

Anna is currently the Artistic Director and School Director of NMBC. She grew up in Los Alamos, New Mexico, and trained at New Mexico Dance Theater & Performance Company under the artistic direction of Susan Baker-Dillingham. She continued her training at the School for Classical & Contemporary Dance at Texas Christian University (TCU), where she graduated Summa Cum Laude with a BFA in ballet and modern dance and a minor in arts administration. While at TCU, Anna received the Nordan Fine Arts Scholarship and the Walt Steimel Dance Scholarship. After graduating, Anna moved to Denver, Colorado, to pursue her dance career. She performed professionally with Zikr Dance Ensemble, Dawson|Wallace Dance Project, and BRIAH Danse, and served as rehearsal assistant to Zikr Dance Ensemble’s artistic director David Taylor for several seasons. She taught and choreographed for several schools in Colorado and New Mexico, including Colorado Ballet Academy (Denver), A Time to Dance (Monument), Littleton Dance Academy (Littleton), Metropolitan Academy of Dance (Centennial), Aspen Santa Fe Ballet (Santa Fe), and New Mexico Dance Theater (Los Alamos). Anna is also a BASI Pilates graduate and instructor. She joined NMBC as the School Director in 2018, and became Artistic Director in 2021. Anna has enjoyed directing NMBC's productions of Alice in Wonderland (2020) and The Nutcracker (2021, 2022), and she looks forward to the future working with this talented company.

Vladimir Conde Reche

A native of Sao Paulo, Brazil, Vladimir received his BFA from The Juilliard School and MFA in choreography from the University of Iowa. He danced with Cisne Negro Dance Company, Ballet Stagiun, and was a guest artist for other companies. Vladimir has been performing, choreographing and teaching all over the globe. Amongst the countries he has worked in are Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Colombia, England, Germany, Italy, Mongolia, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, South Africa, the United States and Uruguay.
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As a choreographer Vladimir frequently collaborates with composers, costume, set and lighting designers.  He choreographs for students and professionals in the contemporary, ballet and theatrical idioms (plays and musicals), and some of his most recent creations are dance films. Vladimir chooses to comment on current issues engaging collaborators, performers and audience members using traditional and/or contemporary language.

Vladimir is an influential dance master and choreographer in Albuquerque, frequently and consistently teaching and choreographing for local studios and institutions such as the New Mexico Ballet Company and School, Ballet Repertory Theatre, Dance Theatre Southwest, Keshet, Magnify, National Dance Institute (Hiland), and others. Vladimir has been a faculty member for the Dance program at the University of New Mexico since 2008, also serving as Department Chair and Head of the Dance Program.

Kelly Ruggiero

Kelly Ruggiero studied on a full scholarship and received her BFA from the University of Arizona, where she graduated summa cum laude. Upon graduating, Kelly received a professional position with David Taylor Dance Theatre. After three seasons with DTDT, Kelly joined Nevada Ballet Theatre, where she collaborated with Cirque du Soleil and performed in their annual Choreographer’s Showcase at the Mystère Theatre. Kelly was offered the esteemed opportunity to perform James Canfield’s Equinoxe at the Kennedy Center while dancing with NBT. She has also professionally performed with Sandra Organ Dance Company. Kelly most recently performed ten seasons with New Mexico Ballet Company, where she also served as Production Manager. Kelly is a certified Comprehensive Pilates Instructor on all equipment, and certified Gyrotonic® Trainer at Core Pilates and Wellness in Spokane, WA. She is absolutely thrilled to have the opportunity to choreograph and work with the dancers and staff of New Mexico Ballet Company.

About Kate Kerrigan

Kate Kerrigan has been a mosaic artist for 23 years.  She studied classic techniques and materials in Venice and Ravenna, Italy. She has been awarded, recognized and published on national and international levels and is widely known in the mosaic community.  Her work has been shown in Italy and Turkey, and throughout the United States. She actively shows in Oregon and California. A Wisconsin native, Kate currently produces at her studio in Redmond, OR. Learn more about Kate’s work at https://katekerrigan.net/. 

PIECING US TOGETHER

This project is a culmination of my 25 years as a mosaic artist, 35 years of restaurant work and 51 years of being human. It embodies everything I am passionate about and love: art, family, friends, film and travel. It is about connection, re-connection, relationships, human touch, unity, inclusion, contribution and collaboration at a time we all need, all through art. If I have learned anything from this unrivaled time in our collective history, it is how much we need each other and the importance of in-person relationships.

As a result of the pandemic, I was feeling the need for human connection and the importance of relationships. Setting out on July 1, 2021, using art as a way to connect, I drove 25,000 miles across the country in my Subaru, for a total of seven months, visiting family and friends in 38 states. In all, a total of 552 people participated! Each person created a mosaic to contribute to the final piece, a fabric woven by those who have touched and shaped my life.

‘Piecing Us Together’ is a truly unique large-scale mosaic. A massive community project, done on a very intimate level. In keeping with the entire journey and story, it is extremely organic and has its own unique rhythm. It is rich with color and texture. Not only does it depict the beauty and diversity of the individuals who contributed, but that of the vast landscape of this country. The hand-made undulating substrate gives the overall piece added texture and movement, accentuating the visual flow of lines. The color scheme is a representation of the four places I have lived, which defines how I know the participant. In addition to the concept and design of this piece, my hand is found in the 24kt gold smalti that fills in the lines between the rows, the thread that ties us all together.

Between the pandemic and political division, several themes emerged and are conveyed in this project: the importance of human connection, unity, inclusion, diversity and collaboration. In addition, the mosaic symbolizes the importance of individual contribution and its collective positive effect. Holding cultural and historical significance, it speaks to our times.