KCC Washington DC Launches 'OffStage: Ballet in Nature' + Ballerina Hee Seo to Lead First Offering
Bringing the classical art of ballet dancing to the modern audience, the Korean Cultural Center Washington, DC (KCCDC) unveils its "OffStage: Ballet in Nature" series. Its premiere show is set for Nov. 11 at 6:00 P.M. EST.
"Offstage: Ballet in Nature" follows a series of outdoor dance performances elevated by its cinematic production. Its maiden offering features South Korean ballet dancer Hee Seo, a principal dancer at the American Ballet Theatre (ABT) - one of the US' leading classical ballet companies. She will be performing an original routine, drawing inspiration from the "boundless beauty of nature."
Korean ballet dancer Hee Seo, principal dancer for the American Ballet Theatre, is set to perform an original piece for the opening of KCCDC's "OffStage: Ballet in Nature" series.
According to a press release from KCCDC, Seo broke away from the traditional stage and choreographed the original dance by taking in the sea's vastness, with its deep waters serving as the backdrop for her upcoming Long Beach, New York performance. The ABT principal dancer, backed by her years of world-class creative experiences, presents the epitome of reconnecting with nature.
Set to Debussy's piano classic "Arabesque No. 1 in E Major," Seo's graceful steps will surely offer serenity from casual audiences to the most serious connoisseurs of the art form.
Watch the first episode of "Offstage: Ballet in Nature" through the KCCDC official YouTube channel, as well as in its official Facebook page. For additional information, interested individuals can check out the KCCDC website. The series aims to feature the best Korean dancers hailing from the United States' most esteemed ballet companies. All original performances will be set against natural backdrops, presented as a short film for locals in Washington, DC as well as fans around the world - available online free of charge!
Hee Seo: "Unspeakably Lissome"
Born in Seoul, South Korea, on March 13, 1986, Hee Seo began her formal training in Russian ballet at the age of twelve - a relatively late starting age for prospective ballet dancers - in the local Sun-Hwa Arts Middle School. After only one year, she was invited to attend. She was awarded a three-year scholarship to study under superstar ballerina Alla Sizova at the Kirov Academy of Ballet (formerly known as the Universal Ballet Academy) in Washington, DC. Seo noted in an interview that the Russian ballerina was her mentor and a major influence in her life. She also had Jacqueline Akhmedova as her teacher, who recalled her as "the best student she has ever had."
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She continued training at the John Cranko Ballet Academy in Stuttgart, Germany, winning the 2003 Prix de Lausanne and the New York Youth American Grand Prix in the same year. Hee Seo joined the ABT company in 2004, having to make the difficult transition from her forte "Russian style" into the required "American style."
Her repertoire with the ABT Company includes Terpsichore and Polyhymnia in the neoclassic "Apollo," Nikiya, Gamzatti, a Lead D'Jampe and a Shade in the production of La Bayadè re (The Temple Dancer), Natalia Petrova in "A Month in the Country," Princess Aurora in Ratmansky's "The Sleeping Beauty," and more.
A 2013 article from the New York Times describes her dancing and fluid line as exuding "an unhurried purity that sums up all that is lovely about ballet." Similarly, Elizabeth Inglese, writing for Vogue in 2014, called Hee Seo "unspeakably lissome" during an annual fall gala for the American Ballet Theatre.
This article is owned by KpopStarz
Written by Mark B.
