Alex Trum & Payton Beson

Lisa Crabtree & Helen Bradshaw

Sabrina McLaughlin

The Orchestra with Todd Eric Allen

   VIP Destin at Mattie Kelly Arts

NORTHWEST FLORIDA

 

Ballet

 

VIP PARTY

Denise Song & Lorraine Whetstone

photos & story by

 

Zhalman Harris

Dorothy Daniels Lister, Linda Watson, Terry Prewitt & Abe Watson

T

he Northwest Florida Ballet 
(NFB) had an opening night 
with a bang. On April 1 the 
Mattie Kelly Arts Center 

came to life once again with a series of 
performances from local, regional and 
international dancers. NFB principal guest 
artists Caitlin Valentine-Ellis and Andres 
Estevez from Ballet Met in Columbus, 
Ohio, International Guest Raul Peinado 
and NFB’s own Brooklyn Burbidge, Keegan 
Lloyd and Jeffrey Senior performed with 
others from the NFB ballet company. 

Opening night of the production ended 

with a VIP reception immediately following 
the performance. Dancers, musicians, 
crew and NFB’s special guests enjoyed an 
assortment of Cajun inspired menu items 
generously provided by Ernie’s Dockside 
Café. Emerald Coast Magazine, Courtyard 
Marriott in Grand Boulevard, a Howard 
Group Development and the Florida 
Division of Cultural Affairs, sponsored 
From Russia With Love: A Celebration of 
the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo.

The Northwest Florida Ballet celebrates 

its 47th year as a regionally recognized 
semi professional ballet company and 
school. In addition, NFB has developed 
the nationallyAcclaimed Académie–an 
integrated academic and dance education 
program serving 156 students from the 
third to eighth grade. In 2012 the NFB 
introduced the Pre- Professional Program 
an intensive dance program for the 9th to 
12th grade students preparing for a career in 
dance. The NFB is led by Artistic Director 
and CEO Todd Eric Allen, an area native. 
The NFB is funded in part by the Florida 
Division of Cultural Affairs.

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4/24/17   12:00 PM