+ Luis V. Santana González
Luis Víctor Santana was born in Mantua, Pinar del Río, Cuba. He started ballet studies at the age of 8 at the Art Vocational School in Pinar del Río. Later, he became part of the National Ballet School in Havana, Cuba, where he trained with Martha Iris Fernández, Ramona de Saa Bello (current director of the Escuela Nacional Fernando Alonso), among others. He graduated 2007. He became part of the Corps of Ballet of Ballet Nacional de Cuba, under the direction of the prima ballerina assoluta Alicia Alonso, where he trained with teachers such as Ana María Leyte, Svetlana Violeta Ballester and Félix Rodríguez. In three years he was promoted to the role of soloist dancing the pas de six of Swan Lake, the bullfighters of Don Quixote, the principal in Majísimo, Diálogo 4, George Balanchine’s Theme and Variations, the friends of Giselle, soloist in Dionaea, Rara Avi by Alberto Méndez, and all the classical repertoire of the company. After six years in the company, he defected to the United States during a trip to Mexico. A few months later, he joined the Cuban Classical Ballet of Miami where he danced the pas de deux Diana and Acteon. In that same year 2013, he joins the company of Ballet Concierto de Puerto Rico as principal dancer, coached by the ballet master Victor Gilí (first dancer of the Ballet Nacional de Cuba). He danced in the company the following repertoire: Grand Pas Classique pas de deux; leading role of Franz in the full length ballet Coppélia with Adiarys Almeida; Desire pas de deux by Austin Ballet Artistic Director Stephen Mills ; the leading role of Raoul and the Phantom at Alberto Méndez’s Phantom of the Opera; Sugar Plum Cavalier and Snow pas de deux at The Nutcracker; Nous Sommes pas de deux by Jimmy Gamonet; Basilio and Espada at Don Quijote; Cos by Maria Rovira; Alí at Le Corsaire; Oberon at Jimmy Gamonet’s Midsummer’s Night Dream; principal role at Septime Webre’s Carmina Burana; principal role of Paquita. As guest artist, he has danced: Swan Lake at Ballet Etudes; The Nutcracker, Giselle, and Dracula at Brandon Ballet; La Sylphide, R&J (contemporary adaptation of Romeo and Juliet), choreography of Gina Mills, the roles of Chesire Cat, Dodo Bird and Jeser in Septime Webre’s Alice in Wonderland, and Septime Webre’s Peter Pan with CODA 21; Ali at Le Corsaire and The Nutcraker with Balleteatro Nacional, and Snow White at School of Performing Arts. In 2018 he became part of the company CODA 21 and Mauro Ballet, where he has interpreted pieces such as Tchaikovsky pas de deux, Rassemblement, Somos, Pérdida, Rockelbels Canon and Don Quijote.
+ Jenna Graham
Jenna Graham, from Oklahoma City, grew up dancing at a local ballet school under the direction of Lisa Webb. In 2012, she began training in New York City at SLK Ballet, under the direction of Sara Knight. Jenna joined the Alabama Ballet in 2014. Some of her favorite roles with the company include Dew Drop and Demi Flower in Balanchine’s The Nutcracker, Flower Girl in Don Quixote, Temperament Fairy in The Sleeping Beauty, Russian Corps in Balanchine’s Serenade, Brown Couple in Fredrick Ashton’s Les Patinuers, and Woman in Nadine Barton’s Watts. Jenna is a pilates instructor at Aero Joe Pilates as well as a dance instructor at Briarwood Ballet.