Photo courtesy Idyllwild Arts Foundation
Idyllwild Arts Dance and Musical Theatre Faculty, and Associate Director and Principal Dancer at Inland Pacific Ballet Jonathan Sharp of Idyllwild is directing and dancing (as the Sea King) in IPC’s “The Little Mermaid” performing from April 6 to 28 at Bridges Auditorium, Lewis Family Playhouse, and Fox Performing Arts Center.
Sharp was trained at the National Academy of the Arts and the School of American Ballet, the official school of the New York City Ballet. While on full scholarship at SAB, he was trained by master teachers Stanley Williams, Peter Martins, Andrea Kramarevsky, Suzanne Farrell, Alexandra Danilova, Suki Schorer and Sean Lavery.
He danced professionally with the Boston Ballet, the Pennsylvania Ballet and the touring Stars of American Ballet, headlined by Robert LaFosse and Darci Kistler. He has appeared on Broadway in the original casts of “The Red Shoes,” “Carousel” (1994 Tony winner for Best Revival), “The Rocky Horror Show Live,” “The Dance of the Vampires” and “Fiddler on the Roof.”
He has also appeared on television as a contract player on “Another World,” and guest-starred on “Law and Order” and “Gilmore Girls.”
He has taught at IAA for 13 years, and also teaches and directs internationally. He also is a principal guest teacher with Pacific Festival Ballet.
“The Little Mermaid’ is a great example of IPB’s use of high-level classical ballet to tell adventurous stories which not only result in a profound and beautiful experience, but where audiences become immersed in an epic love story that is familial and celebrated,” said Sharp. “Familiarity with other versions of ‘The Little Mermaid’ story, allows those who have never experienced classical ballet to become initiated with this type of storytelling and enjoy the splendor of classical dance. It’s like watching sculptures in motion.”
The score includes the music of classical composers Ravel, Debussy, Britten, Vaughan Williams, Janácek and Dvorak.
For reservations and more information about the ballet, visit IPBALLET.org.
