EMBER SERIES 24
March 15 // 7 pm
March 16 // 7 pm
March 17 // 2 pm
St. Cecilia Music Center
Tickets // $35 General Admission
Deos Contemporary Ballet returns to the stunning St. Cecilia Music Center stage this March to deliver a mixed repertoire ballet performance unlike any other. EMBER Series 24 celebrates ingenuity and innovation through incubating FOUR world premiere works alongside the return of an audience favorite from the company’s 2018 debut. These never-before-seen ballets were created right here in Grand Rapids to delight, inspire, and move our dedicated audiences and welcome in new faces.
Rekindle your love for ballet during EMBER.
What You’ll See during EMBER Series 24:
Deos Ballet dancers rehearse “Locked Doors”
The night begins with the return of Brahms Trio, choreographed by Grand Rapids Ballet School and Junior Company Director Attila Mosoylgo for Deos Ballet’s inaugural COLLIDE Series performances in 2018. The show goes on to celebrate innovation and new works with the presentation of FOUR world premieres, including the work of guest choreographer Isaac Aoki and Artistic Director Tess Sinke. Aoki’s work is an intimate pas de deux (dance for two) featuring contemporary influences with classical lines. His first-ever creation for Deos Ballet was created during a four-day residency with our dancers in early January. Sinke’s new works for EMBER highlight her range as both a choreographer and a storyteller, shining light on tragic and forgotten moments in history, elevating the struggles of the everyday woman to the stage, and emphasizing the technique of her dancers and their work en pointe. Leroy in Color is a full company work set to the whimsical music of Leroy Anderson. This lighthearted, neo-classical ballet is performed with the permission of the Woodbury Music Company. Deos Ballet is thrilled to be the first-ever professional dance company to perform to Anderson’s “Chicken Reel.” Sinke’s Where Midnight Meets Morning explores the complexities of dealing with post-partum depression. The new work is based on Sinke’s personal diary entries as she dealt with PPD, incorporating recordings of the entries as a part of the musical score for her dancers. Where Midnight Meets Morning brings shared motherhood experiences to the stage in an authentic and true way, and will prove to move the audiences that are fortunate to experience it.
Deos Ballet artists rehearse “Locked Doors”
Locked Doors* is the culmination of years of research into the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire. This tragedy took the lives of 146 people within just 18 minutes. The vast majority of the victims were immigrant women from Italy and Russia between the ages of 14 and 30. The fire led to advancements in workers' rights, unions, factory safety regulations and furthered the women’s rights movement. It is the story behind International Women’s Day. Each character portrayed onstage tells the story of a real person who perished in the fire, chosen after a year of research into the victims’ backstories. The choreography and stories are drawn from this research and created specifically for the stage. The only characters that we have taken “creative liberties” with are Rose Friedman and Sam Taback. Multiple eyewitness accounts are recorded seeing two young factory workers kiss before they jumped from the building together. Some researchers have narrowed down to a short list of who those individuals were, however, we do not know for certain who the couple was. Both Rose Friedman and Sam Taback were real people who worked in the factory and were victims of the tragedy. They were each extremely active Russian union members, advocating for better working conditions through strikes against the factory leading up to the day of the fire. They both died from fracture injuries from jumping out of the window. We have chosen to tell the story of young love, cut far too short, through them. Multiple guest artists join Deos Ballet for the world premiere of what will prove to be an important part of Deos (and choreographic) history. Violinist Letitia Jap will perform live onstage for portions of the work, accompanied by musical recordings, factory sound effects, and narration. Locked Doors is a pertinent piece to premiere during Woman’s History Month and so close to International Women’s Day.
*Note: Locked Doors contains mature themes including death and a building fire, and also utilizes stunts, smoke, and strobe lighting. Parental discretion is advised.
Learn More:
Guest Artists:
Jennie Judd Reyes, Courtesy of Jennie.
Jennie Judd Reyes
Soprano, Jennie Judd Reyes is known for her vocal versatility and stage artistry, singing repertoire that spans from the renaissance to the present. Recent performances include Blonde in Die Entführung aus dem Serail (Opera Grand Rapids), Mabel in Pirates of Penzance (Opera Grand Rapids), soloist with the Williamsport Symphony Orchestra, VoxGR (Herz under Mund und Tat und Leben BWV 147), Holland Bach Society (Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland BWV 61), and Considering Matthew Shepard (Fountain Street Church). In addition to performing, Judd teaches voice at Hope College and is the Operations Manager for the Holland Chorale. She greatly enjoys interdisciplinary projects and is grateful to collaborate with Deos in portraying the true story of “Locked Doors.”
Letitia Jap, Courtesy of Letitia
Letitia Jap
Letitia Jap, violinist, enjoys a career as a performer and educator. She finds most joy using music to connect with people and makes it her life mission to create programs or platforms that will help people engage with music in fun and accessible ways.
Winning numerous concerto competitions, Letitia has been a featured soloist with orchestras like the Seattle Symphony, Austin Civic Orchestra, Bellevue Philharmonic Orchestra, and has performed solo recitals at festivals such as the Chelsea Music Festival, Lake George Music Festival, and the 21st Century Artist Initiative.
Additionally, Letitia has served as concertmaster with the Seoul International Community Orchestra, the Boston Chamber Orchestra, Masterworks Music Festival, and various other orchestras. She also performed with orchestras such as Boston Philharmonic Orchestra, Seattle Symphony Orchestra, and Masterworks Festival Orchestra.
Letitia also maintains an active schedule as an educator, hoping to inspire the next generation of musicians. Her experience draws on years spent teaching at the University of Texas String Project Program in Austin, Texas and at the New England Conservatory Preparatory School in Boston, Massachusetts. In Boston, she was an ensemble coach for the Greater Boston Asian American Symphony Orchestra and served on faculty for Youth and Family Enrichment Services Inc., teaching music to children from a lower-income, Haitian community. Currently, Letitia is a member of the Suzuki Association of the Americans. Letitia was Head Chamber Ensemble Coach at the University of Rochester, held two teaching assistant positions at the Eastman School of Music, faculty at the Eastman Community Music School, was Music History Lecturer at Nazareth College, and Artist in Residence at Hong Kong Baptist University. She is currently Affiliate Professor of Violin at Grand Valley State University.
Letitia received her Bachelor of Music from the University of Texas at Austin, her Master of Music from the New England Conservatory, and her Doctor of Musical Arts at the Eastman School of Music.
In her free time, she enjoys reading, trying out new restaurants and eating good food, exploring different cities, and watching Shark Tank.
Ben Henson, Courtesy of Ben.
Ben Henson
After graduating Calvin College in 2019 with degrees in theatre and small business administration, Benson has spent a fair bit of his time exploring many of his other passions, especially in outdoor sports such as backpacking and cycling. When he’s not out riding down pavement, trekking across all of creation, or working at REI, he spends his time watching shows when he can and participating where he is able. You might have caught him onstage in another ballet - Turning Pointe School of Dance’s The Four Loves in both 2019 and 2022. Benson started working with Deos in 2021 with the world premiere of Trifles, and has since supported many of their efforts behind the scenes, including Collide 2022 and our Children’s Club storytelling performances.
Isaac Lee, Courtesy of Isaac.
Isaac Lee
Lee first started dance at age 5 under Kim Burson at Dance Arts public program and later transitioned to Champaign Ballet Academy and Champaign Urbana Ballet. He performed in their productions of Copélia, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, Swan Lake, and The Nutcracker as well as regularly teaching academy classes, and was the 2019 recipient of the Bonnie Ziegler Award for Leadership. He attended Summer Intensive programs at Indiana Ballet Conservatory and Ellison Ballet in New York. After graduating, Lee joined the Nashville Ballet under Nick Mullikin and Paul Vasterling as a Trainee for two seasons, and was promoted to Second Company for a third season. While there he performed in Vasterling’s The Nutcracker, Firebird, Peter Pan, and Cinderella, and worked with esteemed choreographers and stagers Maria Konrad, Anaïs Chalendard, Charlotte Boyd-Christensen, and Lucy McCauley. Lee then became an Apprentice with Grand Rapids Ballet, and continues to hone his artistry and technique.
Guest Choreographer
Isaac Aoki, courtesy of Isaac.
Isaac Aoki
Originally from Salt Lake City, Utah, Isaac Aoki made his debut at three as a frog in Thumbelina at the University of Utah. He does not remember a time he didn’t love dance. He went on to study at Ballet West Academy, performing yearly in its Nutcracker. He then earned a full scholarship to the Kirov Academy in Washington DC where he studied Russian Vaganova technique. He then successfully auditioned for a full scholarship at the Professional Division program at Pacific Northwest Ballet in Seattle where he studied for two years and performed with the company. From the age of 14, he attended programs every summer on scholarship – Kaatsbaan, The School of American Ballet, Miami City Ballet School, Springboard Danse Montreal, and Nederlands Dans Theatre. Isaac was invited to join Grand Rapids Ballet in 2013 by its then new director – Patricia Barker, former principal dancer with Pacific Northwest Ballet. During his time there, he danced contemporary and classical works by George Balanchine, Lar Lubovitch, Jennifer Archibald, Olivier Wevers, and Alejandro Cerrudo. Isaac also originated roles in new creations by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Penny Saunders, and Robyn Mineko Williams. While living in Michigan Isaac was also a guest artist with Hubbard Street II, touring to Germany and at Lincoln Center to perform works by Alejandro Cerrudo, Peter Chu, and Bryan Aryias. He has choreographed four ballets since the inception of Grand Rapids Ballet’s Jumpstart series, in which company dancers create their own works. Isaac currently dances with Charlotte Ballet in North Carolina.