South San Francisco, CA July 4, 2021 Submitted by Henry Lowman, Oceánica Ballet
Oceánica Ballet is proud to present its inaugural production, Blue Skies. Five choreographers explore themes of resilience, hope, and joy in a dynamic showcase of world premieres presented in-person. Constanza Murphy aims to create a moment of simple beauty danced deftly by an ensemble of men in her ballet “Rachmaninoff Suite.” Jessica Woodman explores dichotomies of slow vs fast, soft vs sharp, and precision vs flow in pas de deux and ensemble forms. Matthew Ebert’s “Raining Glass” imagines a torrential downpour which resembles shards of glass. Robert Burns Lowman juxtaposes moments of community and meditation in “Lark Ascending.” Edgar Lepe’s “Swingin’” finds parallels between WWII-era big band music and our current need for hope and vivacity in the face of uncertainty.
Oceánica Ballet presents Blue Skies at the following venues and times
Saturday, July 17th, 2021 at 3pm and 7pm
Bay Area Ballet Conservatory, 275 Wattis Way, South San Francisco, CA 94080
TICKETS: $30 at the following link:
For more information visit https://oceanicaballet.org
Sunday, July 18th, 2021 at 12noon and 3pm
Hiller Aviation Museum, 601 Skyway Rd., San Carlos, CA 94070
TICKETS: Included with purchase of museum admission:
https://www.hiller.org/tickets
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 & 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, Edgar Lepe, Rosalia Lerner, Becky Robinson-Leviton, Chloé Watson, 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 was PBT Artistic Assistant from 2018-2020 and directed PBT’s annual Dance Makers choreography showcase from 2016-2019. Robert currently teaches ballet at Susan Hayward School of Dancing.
Blue Skies Featured Choreographers
Constanza Murphy trained at North Star Ballet in Fairbanks, AK before receiving her BFA in Ballet Performance at the University of Utah. Throughout her career, she has worked with a wide range of classical, contemporary, modern, and opera companies across the country. Recently her work has brought her to the San Francisco Bay Area to companies such as Oakland Ballet, Bay Pointe Ballet, Sacramento Ballet, Amy Seiwert’s Imagery, and Peninsula Ballet Theatre. Notably, Constanza performed a variety of principal roles with Bay Pointe Ballet, including Tinkerbell, Sugarplum Fairy, and Lucy and had many opportunities to showcase her choreography.
Born and raised in San Jose, Jessica Woodman is a multi-disciplinary dancer, teacher, and choreographer with over 10 years of professional experience. She holds a Bachelors of Arts in Performing Arts and is certified in the GYROKINESIS® & GYROTONIC® methods, Pilates, and American Ballet Theatre’s National Training Curriculum. As a guest artist, she has performed both Soloist and Principal roles with: Bay Pointe Ballet, Oakland Ballet, Menlowe Ballet, Western Ballet, and The Milissa Payne Project. Jessica is currently owner and director of ShadowOfaDancer and Ballet Master of Nor Cal Dance Arts.
Matthew Ebert began his formal training with San Francisco Ballet School. During his time with the school, he performed in their annual Nutcracker and Student Showcase as well as a few other ballets with the San Francisco Ballet. Upon graduating from the Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington, D.C., Matthew spent a few years abroad. He attended the prestigious Bolshoi Ballet Academy in Moscow. Returning home, he currently works as a freelance artist and recently has started choreographing. As a guest artist, Matthew has danced with many companies throughout the Bay Area.
About Oceánica Ballet
Oceánica Ballet is a group of dynamic artists curated from the Bay Area’s diverse classical dance scene. Oceánica 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.
Oceánica Ballet, Inc. has incorporated as a charitable nonprofit corporation and has applied to the IRS for 501(c)(3) status, which it expects to receive. To help support this incredible work, donations are accepted HERE.