Lake Tahoe Dance Collective is delighted to present the 13th Annual Lake Tahoe Dance Festival, featuring artists from New York City Ballet, Broadway, Boston Ballet, Metropolitan Opera Ballet, and more. An opening night gala in Tahoe City at William B Layton Park marks the beginning of the Festival, followed by Tahoe City Community Night, Kings Beach Community Night, and a closing night benefit in Incline Village.

With a mission to present the finest quality professional dance and dance instruction in North Lake Tahoe, Christin Hanna and Constantine Baecher started The Lake Tahoe Dance Festival in 2013, now in its second decade. Lake Tahoe Dance commissions new works, preserves the legacy of rarely-seen classics and fan favorites, while offering the highest caliber artists a creative platform.

Some of the artists featured at the 2025 Lake Tahoe Dance Festival include Lia Cirio and Paul Craig (Boston Ballet); Melody Mennite Walsh (Houston Ballet), Dwayne Brown (Metropolitan Opera Ballet); Amber Neff (New Chamber Ballet), Taylor Stanley and Indiana Woodward (New York City Ballet); and Stephen Hanna (New York City Ballet / Broadway).

Tarantella, George Balanchine

dancers: Daniel Ulbricht, Indiana Woodward

This sprightly music, despite its Italian air, was composed by Louis Moreau Gottschalk (1829-1869), a New Orleans­–born composer and pianist who made a large impact in his brief life. Gottschalk was a true American original, and his achievements had a great impact on composers and performers who followed. Balanchine admired this particular composition and choreographed a pas de deux for Patricia McBride and Edward Villella - two virtuosic dancers - in 1964. In his Complete Stories of the Great Ballets, Balanchine wrote of the music, “It is a dazzling display piece, full of speed and high spirits. So, I hope, is the dance, which is ‘Neopolitan’ if you like and ‘demi-caractère.’ The costumes are inspired by Italy, anyhow, and there are tambourines.”

New Commission, Holly Curran

dancers: Amber Neff & Dwayne Brown

This will be Holly Curran’s second commission for the Lake Tahoe Dance Festival.

Floreciente, Melody Mennite

dancers: Melody Mennite, & Stephen Hanna + workshop students.

Floreciente means to flourish or bloom. There was a time, not long ago, when we were closer to the rhythms of the natural world. We more intimately belonged to this Earth and simultaneously to each other. Finding ourselves out of balance in a modern era, we have become disoriented and searching for clearer path forward. We look back and see that despite all our distractions, natures rhythms, cycles, and wisdom continue to hold and sustain us. Listen to the song of nature, that rhythm of your own heartbeat, it is the deepest place in you that says you are home.

May we bloom.

Chaptered in Fragments, Lia Cirio

dancers:

Chaptered in Fragments was Lia Cirio's first piece for Boston Ballet’s main stage. She began choreographing it during the pandemic and completed it as they were emerging from that time. It premiered in 2022. Lia chose the title because the piece felt like it had grown alongside the different chapters of our lives…the dancers and she were not the same people they were when we started creating it, and by the time it was performed, they had changed. The main pas de deux couple (particularly the woman) in the piece goes on an emotional journey, but Lia always felt there was more to their story. When Christin Hanna invited her to create something for the festival, it felt like the perfect opportunity to add a new fragment to that chapter. Lia is excited to dive into it again, both as a person and as a choreographer, she is constantly evolving.

“Thank you, Christin Hanna and Constantine Baecher, for founding this festival of living dance history, and keeping going. You are keepers of humanity and hope.” — Fjord Review

SPECIAL PROGRAMS:

Opening Night Gala

Tuesday, July 22, 2025 at 8pm at William B. Layton Park, Tahoe City

The Lake Tahoe Dance Festival's Opening Night Gala celebrates bringing the finest in Dance to the shore of Lake Tahoe! Artists from New York City Ballet, Broadway, Boston Ballet and more grace the stage following the pre-performance reception with food, wine, and silent auction.

Tahoe City Community Night

Wednesday, July 23, 2025 at 9pm at William B. Layton Park, Tahoe City

We believe strongly in making sure that the finest in dance is accessible to the whole community - so join us for Community Night in Tahoe City, where all tickets are just $30!

This event is perfect for the whole family, so bring your loved ones along for a memorable evening. Don't miss out on this exciting opportunity to experience the beauty of dance in the heart of Tahoe City with artists from Boston Ballet, Metropolitan Opera Ballet, New York City Ballet and more gracing our dance festival stage. See you there!

Kings Beach Community Night

Thursday, July 24, 2025 at 9pm at Kings Beach State Recreation Area

Bring your friends, a picnic, and join Lake Tahoe Dance Festival’s first ever community night in Kings Beach! Tickets are just $30!

Closing Night Benefit

Friday, July 25, 2025 at 8m at Private Residence*, Incline Village

Close out the 2025 festival by helping Lake Tahoe Dance Collective present its year-round programs, educational outreach and school of dance. $135 ticket includes bountiful hors d’ouvres by celebrated chef Alex Tolger, an open wine, beer, and kombucha bar. Seating will be provided for the performance.

*Exact location will be shared with ticket holders only, 48 hours prior to the event.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS:

Dwayne Brown is a native New Yorker who has lived in every borough (...except the fifth) and loves the ways in which the city still reveals itself even after three decades. He trained at The Ailey School and received a B.A. in Psychology from Vassar College. As a professional dancer and performer his credits include: (Theatre/Stage) The Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, The Kennedy Center, Carnegie Hall; (TV/Film) At Home With Amy Sedaris (TruTV), The Get Down (Netflix), Great Performances at The Met (PBS); (Commercial) Mount Gay Rum, Stadium Goods, The Consistency Project, and NYFW; (Modern Dance) Bill T. Jones/AZ Co., Ralph Lemon, Kevin Beasley, Sean Curran. Recent credits: Lyric Opera Chicago as a soloist dancer, Lifes exhibit at The Hammer Museum, and the upcoming film She Came To Me, directed by Rebecca Miller. He is represented by Clear Talent Group and currently serves on the advisory committee for ARTBATH, an immersive performance salon series at the historic Blue Building.

Holly Curran is a performer currently residing bi-coastally between New York and Southern Oregon. A native of New Jersey, she trained at and graduated from the Rock School of Dance Education. Sher has danced professionally with Ballet Austin, Terra Firma Dance Theater, Claudia Schreier and Company, New Chamber Ballet, and the Lyric Opera of Chicago among others. She is currently a member of the Metropolitan Opera Ballet. Simultaneous with her dance career, Holly studied American History at Columbia University, where she graduated *** Laude in 2018. This is her second commissioned work for the Lake Tahoe Dance Festival.

Lia Cirio began her training at Swarthmore Ballet Theatre with Lori Ardis. She went on to train at Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet under the direction of Marcia Dale Weary and Darla Hoover, where she also studied privately with Theresa Crawford and Rafael Grigorian. From 2008-2009, Cirio toured with Trey McIntyre Project, performing throughout the United States and the world. She danced principal roles in McIntyre’s Reassuring Effects of Form, Poetry, and A Day in the Life, and originated roles in various new works by McIntyre. At age 16, Cirio was awarded a Level One award from the National Foundation for Advancement of the Arts and was a Presidential Scholar in the Arts finalist. She was also awarded the top scholarship and Founder’s Award by Barbara Weisberger at the Regional Dance America Festival. She was Boston Ballet’s Princess Grace Nominee in 2004. Cirio was named in Dance Magazine’s first “On the Rise” feature article, and has been featured in additional articles in Dance Magazine, Dance Spirit, and on the cover of Pointe. She has been hailed as “one of the most accomplished actress-dancers in the company” by The Patriot Ledger, and as “an outstanding performer with tremendous stage presence” during Boston Ballet’s Spain tour. She has performed in galas around the world including in the Philippines with Ballet Manila and in Mongolia and Japan with United Ballet Company. She has performed at the Lincoln Center and at the Guggenheim in Sonya Tayeh’s Unveiling, as well as at Jacob’s Pillow in Ballet Coast to Coast. Cirio was the co-founder of Cirio Collective, where she serves as the Assistant to the Artistic Director, as well as a dancer. In 2018, Cirio made her choreographic debut with Sta(i)r(e)s during BB@home: ChoreograpHER. In 2019, she choreographed Lenore for the second ChoreograpHER installment, as well as …the peppermint wind for Boston Ballet School’s Next Generation. She choreographed Chesire for Ballet Academy East in New York City and will be choreographing world premieres for Festival Ballet Rhode Island and Boston Ballet’s mainstage ChoreograpHER program in 2022. At 16, Cirio was invited by Mikko Nissinen to join Boston Ballet II. She was promoted to Boston Ballet’s corps de ballet in 2004, to second soloist in 2006, and to soloist in 2007. From 2008-2009, Cirio toured with Trey McIntyre Project, performing throughout the United States and the world. Following her time with Trey McIntyre Project, she returned to Boston Ballet for the 2009-2010 season and was named principal dancer in 2010.

Paul Craig started his training with Deb Knight and Jefferson Baum at the Conservatory of Dance. He later received the Garold Gardner Scholarship to train at Virginia School of the Arts under the direction of Petrus Bosman and Tyrone Brooks. Before graduating, he was awarded the Virginia School of the Arts Merit Award and the Dean’s Award. In 2006, he trained in Boston Ballet School’s Trainee Program. His Boston Ballet repertoire includes August Bournenville’s Pas de Six, Val Caniparoli’s Lady of the Camellias (Gaston), Jean Coralli and Jules Perrot’s (adapted by Larissa Ponomarenko) Giselle (Hilarion), John Cranko’s Romeo and Juliet (Paris, Tybalt) and Onegin (Prince Gremin), Ivan Liška’s Le Corsaire (Konrad), and Leonid Yakobson’s Vestris. Craig has also enjoyed dancing an array of Neoclassical and Contemporary works including George Balanchine’s Chaconne, Stravinsky Violin Concerto, Episodes, Divertimento No. 15, Symphony in Three Movements, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Theme and Variations, and Four Temperaments, Jorma Elo’s Plan to B, Slice to Sharp, Double Evil, La Sacre Du Printemps, and Brake the Eyes, William Forsythe’s Artifact 2017, The Second Detail, Pas/Parts 2018, Blake Works, and Playlist (EP), Jiri Kylian’s Bella Figura, Wings of Wax, and Petit Mort, Wayne McGragor’s Chroma and Obsidian Tear, John Neumeier’s Third Symphony of Gustav Mahler, Justin Peck’s In Creases, Helen Pickett’s Tsukiyo, Petal, and Eventide, Jerome Robbins’ Fancy Free and Interplay, Norbert Vesak’s Belong, and Christopher Wheeldon’s Polyphonia. He has performed in Jacob’s Pillow, Tanglewood Music Festival, Cape Cod Dance Festival, Spoleto Festival, World Ballet Competition Gala (2011 and 2012), American Dance Competition Gala (2016), and performed internationally in Russia, South Korea, Spain, Germany, France, Finland, Mexico, England, and Canada. He is also a dancer with Cirio Collective, a Boston-based contemporary dance company. Craig joined Boston Ballet II in 2007, was promoted to Corps de ballet in 2008, and to Second Soloist in 2014. He was promoted to Soloist during the 2015–2016 season and to Principal dancer in 2017.

Stephen Hanna was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He entered the School of American Ballet (SAB), the official school of New York City Ballet, in the fall of 1992. Mr. Hanna became an apprentice with New York City Ballet in 1997, and later that year he joined the Company as a member of the corps de ballet. Mr. Hanna was promoted to the rank of soloist in February 2004, and in January 2005, he was promoted to principal dancer. In 2008, Stephen appeared in the original Broadway cast of Billy Elliott the musical, and since appeared in On The Town, An American in Paris, and most recently Hello, Dolly! on Broadway, as well as in The Piano Upstairs with Alessandra Ferri.

A native of Santa Cruz, California, Melody Mennite trained at Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre under Robert Kelley and Diane Cypher and at Pacific Northwest Ballet. She also attended summer intensive programs with Suzanne Farrell. Mennite attended three consecutive summer intensive programs at Houston Ballet's Ben Stevenson Academy, starting at the age of 13. She then spent one year in Houston Ballet II on full scholarship and stipend, also winning a scholarship award from Regional Dance America/Pacific. She joined the company at the age of 17 and rose through the ranks quickly, achieving Principal dancer status in 2008. Melody retired from Houston Ballet after her 23rd season with the company.

With Houston Ballet, in Houston and on tours nationally and internationally Melody has originated many roles (designated by an asterisk) and performed all of the leading classical roles in the company’s rep including Ben Stevenson’s Giselle, Coppelia, The Sleeping Beauty, August Bournonville’s La Sylphide, John Cranko’s Onegin, and Taming of the Shrew, Sir Kenneth McMillan’s Manon, Sir Fredrick Ashton’s La Fille Mal Gardee, Stanton Welch’s Romeo and Juliet, Swan Lake, La Bayadere, Marie,* Cinderella, The Nutcracker (Sugar Plum Fairy and Clara*), Sylvia (Psyche*), Madame Buuterfly (Cio Cio San and Kate), Ronald Hynd’s The Merry Widow, Trey McIntyre’s Peter Pan, John Neumeier’s A Midsummer Night's Dream. Her neoclassical and contemporary repertoire includes principal roles in ballets by Jiri Kylian, George Balanchine, Justin Peck, Jerome Robbins, William Forsythe, Christopher Bruce, Aszure Barton, Christopher Wheeldon, Trey McIntyre, Cathy Marston, Twyla Tharp, Nacho Duato, Paul Taylor, Jorma Elo, James Kudelka, Garret Smith, Mark Morris, Wayne McGregor, David Bintley, Edward Liang, and Stanton Welch. Mennite originated many roles with these choreographers.

In 2015, Mennite Co-Founded and Directed REACH - a choreographic project that curates evenings of world premieres by emerging choreographers and designates all proceeds for arts education programs in underserved schools. Following the success of REACH, Mennite and her colleagues were invited to collaboratively create a world premiere for a theatre in the round at the George R. Brown Convention Center, for Houston Ballet. As a choreographer, Mennite has created 16 commissioned works, including Ana for Ballet Arkansas, Next of Kin for Houston Ballet Academy, Own commissioned for Kingwood Dance Theatre which won a Regional Dance America award, The 64 and 91 for Kansas City Ballet, We all are for Contingent Ballet in 2020, Nostalgia de los montañas for Houston Chamber Orchestra Festival, and You and me and the waves for Houston Ballet, among others. She was the choreographer, lead actor, and dancer in the award-winning film Self Sabotage, which was the short film category winner for the Festivus Film Festival in 2012. Mennite is on the faculty of Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, and has taught master classes for Houston Ballet and Houston Ballet Academy, Ballet Arkansas, Vitacca Ballet, Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre, Huang Ballet School, Chunner Studio in New York, Perry Mansfield, and Kingwood Dance Theatre.

Nominated by Pointe Magazine as Standout Performance of 2022, Amber Neff is an independent artist based in New York. She is currently a member of New Chamber Ballet and has danced for The Suzanne Farrell Ballet, Claudia Schreier & Company, Emery LeCrone DANCE, Intermezzo Dance Company, Boston Ballet and Richmond Ballet. Amber received her at The Dance Design School, the HARID Conservatory, and the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis (JKO) School at American Ballet Theater.

Daniel Ulbricht was born in St. Petersburg, Florida, USA, and began his dance training at the age of 11. At age 16, Mr. Ulbricht was invited by the School of American Ballet (SAB), the official school of New York City Ballet, to continue his training. As a student at SAB, Mr. Ulbricht performed with New York City Ballet as a Jester in Peter Martins' The Sleeping Beauty. In December 2000, he became an apprentice with New York City Ballet and in November 2001 he joined the Company as a member of the corps de ballet. In January 2005, Mr. Ulbricht was promoted to the rank of soloist and principal dancer in May 2007. During his time there, he has danced featured roles in a number of Balanchine, Robbins, Martins, and Wheeldon ballets including George Balanchine’s Prodigal Son, Tarantella, Stars and Stripes, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Mozartiana, Nutcracker, Symphony in 3, The Steadfast Tin Soldier:Jerome Robbins’s Fancy Free, Interplay, Suite of Dances, Four Seasons;and Peter Martins’sJeu de Cartes, Hallelujah Junction, Eight More, Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, Romeo + Julietamong many others. Mr. Ulbricht has also danced Tarantellaat the 2004 Kennedy Center Honors to celebrate the Balanchine Centenary. He has also performed at a number of national and international festivals and galas.

Indiana Woodward was born in Paris, France and began her dance training at the age of ten at the Yuri Grigoriev School of Ballet in Venice, California. Ms. Woodward began studying at the School of American Ballet (SAB), the official school of New York City Ballet, during the 2010 summer course and enrolled as a full-time student that fall. In August 2012, she became an apprentice with NYCB and joined the Company as a member of the corps de ballet in December 2012. Ms. Woodward was promoted to Principal in October 2021. Ms. Woodward is a recipient of the 2016 Lincoln Center Emerging Artist Award and 2016 Clive Barnes Foundation Award. In 2010, she won first place in the Bolshoi Ballet Academy Summer Intensive in New York City and was invited to perform at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy gala in Moscow.

Dates: July 22 - 25, 2025

Locations:

Gatekeeper's Museum - William B. Layton Park, 130 West Lake Boulevard, Tahoe City, CA 96145
Kings Beach State Recreation Area, 8318 North Lake Boulevard, Kings Beach, CA 96143
Private Residence*, Incline Village, NV

*Exact location will be shared with ticket holders only, 48 hours prior to the event.

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