LIFE

Field pared to 31 dancers in IBC

Sherry Lucas
The Clarion-Ledger
Melissa Gelfin (USA, Senior) and Telmo Moreira (Portugal, Senior)

Thirty-one dancers are advancing to the final leg in the 10th USA International Ballet Competition, in a gracefully keen battle of artistic and athletic ability.

The field was pared down from 54 for a top selection who'll dance it out over the next three nights at Thalia Mara Hall. Round III competition in classical and contemporary ballet is Tuesday through Thursday. Medalists and additional award recipients will be announced Friday.

Dancers are divided into junior (ages 15-18) and senior (ages 19-26) division. Still in the dancing are: 10 senior males; 7 senior females; 7 junior males; 7 junior females.

Round III dancers represent 11 nations. In the country count, the Republic of Korea and United States are tied with six apiece, China and Japan have four each and Brazil still three finalists in the competition. Cuba and Mexico each have two. Australia, South Africa, Russia and Chile are also represented.

Dance legend Edward Villella, chairman of the 2014 International Jury, praised advancements he's seen in competition. "That's the wonder of this field. It constantly moves forward," he said, predicting more such momentum down the line.

He was impressed that dancers' presentations were not so flamboyant. "Sometimes in competitions and with young people, it's all out there. And so much of what we do is internal, because we just don't fly around.

"We have structure, we have form, we have approach to musicality, we have style, we have purity, we have all of these things. And in previous competitions, I have been less than impressed with the idea that people were just out there for flash and dash."

He appreciates bravura, he said, but artistic directors and jurors have to keep a wider variety of repertoire in mind.

Dancer scores from Round I and Round II are combined to determine who moves into Round III. But the stage reverts to a level dancing field for the culminating round. "It's a clean slate. They're starting all over with their scoring," said Sue Lobrano, USA IBC executive director. Spectators will see classical ballet solo variations or a pas de deux, and a contemporary ballet selection (solo or pas deux deux) of their own choosing over the next three nights.

The USA IBC, held every four years in Jackson, is an "olympic-style" competition in which dancers vie for gold, silver and bronze medals, cash awards, company contracts and scholarships. Unlike an athletic contest, however, competitors aren't judged against each other, but rather against international standards of the art form. Eliminated dancers stay on as guests of the competition.

Round III competitors

Senior Males

Aaron Smyth (Australia)

Andile Ndlovu (South Africa)

Byul Yun (Republic of Korea)

Ivan Duarte (Brazil)

Jeong Hansol (Republic of Korea)

Ji Seok Ha (Republic of Korea)

Kota Fujishima (Japan)

Mengjun Chen (Peoples Republic of China)

Rodrigo Almarales (Cuba)

Steven Loch (USA)

Senior Females

Arianni Martin (Cuba)

Ga-Yeon Jung (Republic of Korea)

Irina Sapozhnikova (Russia)

Melissa Gelfin (USA)

Shiori Kase (Japan)

Sirui Liu (Peoples Republic of China)

Tamako Miyazaki (Japan)

Junior Males

Aran Bell (USA)

Blake Kessler (USA)

Daniel Alejandro McCormick-Quintero (Mexico)

Gustavo Carvalho (Brazil)

Jinsol Eum (Republic of Korea)

Taiyu He (Peoples Republic of China)

Yue Shi (Peoples Republic of China)

Junior Females

Gisele Bethea (USA)

Mackenzie Richter (USA)

Mizuho Nagata (Japan)

Paulina Guraieb Abella (Mexico)

Romina Contreras (Chile)

So Jung Lee (Republic of Korea)

Yasmin Lomondo (Brazil)

Upcoming

USA IBC schedule

Tuesday through Thursday: Round III competition, 7:30 p.m. daily

Saturday: Awards gala, 7 p.m., $30-$55

Sunday: Encore gala, $30-$55

All performances are at Thalia Mara Hall. Ticket availability remains for all performances, with increasingly limited selection toward the end of competition. Visit usaibc.com or the Thalia Mara Hall box office, or call (601) 973-9249.

To contact Sherry Lucas, email slucas@jackson.gannett.com or call (601) 961-7283. Follow @SherryLucas1 on Twitter.