Oceanica Ballet presents "EVOLUTION" 3/10-3/12 in South San Francisco/ Bay area Ballet Conservatory

Oceanica Ballet presents EVOLUTION, a showcase of new and returning choreographic works by five San Francisco Bay Area choreographers delving into themes of growth and transformation. Andrea Salazar's "Shaped" explores how we grow and evolve based on experiences that shape the way we perceive our world and live our lives. Connolly Strombeck's "Bloom'' is a neoclassical celebration of personal growth and discovery, in which each movement examines the beauty of a different type of flower. Vinnie Jones reimagines Swan Lake's white swan pas de deux with two women. Also featuring Vinnie Jones's "Il Purgatorio," Edgar Lepe's "A Soul's Dream," and Robert Burns Lowman's "Echoes."

EVOLUTION will be performed in-person in Bay Area Ballet Conservatory's Studio One at
7:30pm on Friday March 10th; at 4pm and 7:30pm on Saturday March 11th; and at 4pm on
Sunday March 12th.

About Artistic Co-Director Edgar Lepe

Trained in Folklorico Ballet throughout his youth, Edgar Lepe began studying classical ballet in
2008 at the San Francisco Academy of Ballet under the direction of ballet masters Richard
Gibson and Zory Karah.
Edgar has performed in Mexico and the United States with Collage West Ensemble, Compania
Mexico Danza, Ensembles Ballet Folklorico of San Francisco, as well as Peninsula Ballet
Theatre, Presidio Dance Theatre, Bay Pointe Ballet, and Oakland Ballet. Edgar has
choreographed for Bay Pointe Ballet, Bay Area Ballet Conservatory, Peninsula Ballet Theatre,
and San Jose Dance International. Edgar currently teaches at Bay Area Ballet Conservatory.

About Artistic Co-Director Robert Burns Lowman

Robert Burns Lowman trained at Susan Hayward School of Dancing and holds B.A.s in Dance
and Theater and Performance Studies from U.C. Berkeley. He is a recipient of the Mask and
Dagger Memorial Prize (2012) and the Rosalyn Schneider Eisner Prize (2013).
Robert has danced in works by Gregory Amato, Marit Brook-Kothlow, Carlos Carvajal, Ron
Cunningham, Katie Faulkner, and Scott Wells. At Peninsula Ballet Theatre, Robert performed
principal roles in Giselle, The Nutcracker, and Carmen Suite; and was featured as a soloist in the
virtual release of The Chrysalis Project. In addition to performing, Robert directed PBT's annual
Dance Makers choreography showcase from 2016-2019 and was PBT Artistic Assistant from
2018-2020. Robert has also performed with em(body) dance project and currently teaches ballet at Shoreline Dance Academy and Bay Area Ballet Conservatory.

EVOLUTION Featured Choreographers

Vinnie Jones grew up in Maine and attended the University of Utah on a dance scholarship. She
has danced with San Diego Ballet, Ballet Tucson, LaMov Compania de Danza of Spain,
Menlowe Ballet, Marika Brussel, and Peninsula Ballet Theatre. As a choreographer she has
presented works in Chicago, Mexico, Spain, Tucson, and locally. In 2019 she started em(body)
dance project, where she presents her choreography. She also collaborates with JonesPro Photo and Film to create screendance works, which have been accepted at the Taking Up Space Festival and the Big Muddy Dance Screendance Fest.

Born and raised in Santiago, Chile, Andi Salazar is a choreographer and dance educator living
in the Bay Area since 2017. She founded Kaze Dance Company in Santiago. Andi obtained her
MFA in Dance and Choreography from Mills College and has performed with Joe Landini and
Dancers, Kara Davis, Molissa Fenley, and Victor Talledos. She is the Artistic Director of A Pulso
Dance Project, showing work in California festivals and venues. She is a Faculty member at Bay
Area Ballet Conservatory, Shawl-Anderson Dance Center, and Alonzo King LINES Ballet
Community program "HeART with Lines."

Connolly Strombeck, a Bay Area native, trained at Academy of Ballet in SF and danced leading
roles with Oakland Ballet, Company C Contemporary Ballet, and many others in the Bay and
elsewhere. He currently teaches full time at the Academy as well as directing his own
project-based contemporary dance company, Trivial Motion.

About Oceanica Ballet
Oceanica Ballet is a group of dynamic artists curated from the Bay Area's diverse classical dance
scene. Oceanica Ballet was formed in 2021 to unite people through the shared experience of
dance performance as a reflection of our complex and diverse collective humanity. Our mission
is to enliven the San Francisco Bay Area cultural landscape by making professional-level ballet
performances accessible and relatable to Bay Area audiences. We enrich the artistic careers of
locally-based, professionally trained dance artists of diverse ages, races, genders, sexual
orientations, and body types. We create innovative new ballet-based dance works, and interpret classics in fresh and exciting ways.
Oceanica Ballet, Inc. has been designated a Section 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.

Others Details

Category: Arts | Performing Arts Artists: Robert Burns Lowman, Edgar Lepe, Vinnie Jones, Connolly Strombeck, Andi Salazar Instagram: https://go.evvnt.com/1556113-4?pid=6581