The Dancers of Ballet West - Demi Soloists
JASON CHINEA - Naples, Florida
Jason began his ballet training at the Harid Conservatory, followed by the School of American Ballet and finished his formal training with School of San Francisco Ballet. Prior to joining Ballet West in 2005, Jason was a member of the corps de ballet for Houston.
VICTORIA LOCK - Houston, Texas
Victoria began training with the Houston Ballet Academy at the age of seven. She performed professionally with the Houston Ballet as an apprentice during the 1998-99 season, joining Ballet West in 1999. She has performed roles that include the Autumn Fairy in Ben Stevenson’s Cinderella, Aurora and the Golden Vine Fairy in The Sleeping Beauty, a pas de deux in Antony Tudor’s The Leaves Are Fading, and in Christopher Bruce’s Ghost Dances.
ELIZABETH MCGRATH - Miller Place, New York
Elizabeth trained at the Seiskaya Ballet in St. James, New York under the tutelage of Valia Seiskaya and the Harid Conservatory in Boca Raton, Florida. A 6-time scholarship winner with the Ballet Education and Scholarship Fund, Inc. (BESFI), she was sponsored and competed at the age of 15 as a semifinalist in the 18th International Ballet Competition in Varna, Bulgaria and again as a finalist in the 8th Concours International de Danse de Paris. Elizabeth earned a Gold Medal from the Youth America Grand Prix in New York in 2000 and garnered the Jeannot B. Cerrone Award at the Harid Conservatory for excellence in performance. Since joining Ballet West in 2001, Elizabeth has performed the role of Hippolyta in George Balanchine’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the Pas de Trois in Jonas Kåge’s Swan Lake, the third Pas De Deux from Hans Van Manen's In and Out, the Sugar Plum Fairy in William Christensen's The Nutcracker, the Lilac Fairy in The Sleeping Beauty, Don Quixote Act III Pas de Deux, Peasant Pas De Deux in Giselle, Autumn Fairy in Ben Stevenson's Cinderella, and Russian Girl from George Balanchine's Seranade. Additional performing credits include performances in John Butler’s Carmina Burana, Anthony Tudar’s Echoing of Trumpets and The Leaves are Fading, George Balanchine’s Who Cares?, Concerto Barocco, and Theme and Variations. Adding to her teaching credits and revisiting her roots, Elizabeth has been a teacher at the BESFI Summer Ballet Intensive.
CHRISTOPHER SELLARS - Huntington Beach, California
Christopher Sellars began his training in Huntington Beach, CA at Orange County Dance Center. His parents were his ballet instructors for eight years, during which he danced many principle roles with the regional ballet company, Ballet Repertory Theatre. At age nineteen, he left home to further his training at The Rock School for Dance Education in Philadelphia, Pa. There he trained under many instructors, including renowned choreographer, Christopher Fleming. After a year he was offered a contract with Ballet West’s second company. He was promoted to second year apprentice in 2006, artist in 2007, and then demi-soloist in 2008.
JACQUELINE STRAUGHAN - Carson City, Nevada
Jacqueline received her formal ballet training at the National Ballet School in Toronto, Canada. In 2000, she joined the National Ballet of Canada as a second year apprentice. Jacqueline performed with the company until 2004 enjoying ensemble roles in James Kudelka’s Four Seasons, Glen Tetley’s Voluntaries, and Frederick Ashton’s Monotones I. She traveled extensively while exploring alternate dance forms before briefly joining South African Ballet Theatre. Jacqueline joined Ballet West during the 2006 season and was promoted to Demi-Soloist in 2008. Highlights of Jacqueline’s repertoire at Ballet West include Ulysses Dove’s Red Angels, Twyla Tharp’s That’s Life Pas de Deux in Nine Sinatra Songs, and Willam Christensen's Arabian Pas de Deux from The Nutcracker.
In 2000, Jacqueline received the Christopher Ondaatje Ballet Prize, given to dance students with outstanding achievement. That same year, she was also presented with a Peter Dwyer Scholarship in recognition for the most promising dance student.
