Former Payson Man Bringing Royal Ballet to Utah w/2pix
Jay Jolley, a renowned ballet artist, grew up in Payson and graduated from Payson High School in 1970. He then went on to graduate from the University of Utah and then moved to New York where he joined the New York Ballet Company. From New York he affilitated with the Royal Ballet in London.
Jolley is known all over the world as one of the finest ballet dancers. He now is the Assistant Director of the Royal Ballet School of London.
Each year Jolley takes his troupe on tour to different parts of the world and this year he has chosen Utah, a great honor for the state. The tour to Utah takes place Jan. 31 through Feb. 9. The graduate students will not only perform, but are offering to share their talents by working with American students and teachers.
The Royal Ballet will perform at at Southern Utah University in Cedar City Feb. 2, Kearns High School Feb. 4, Brigham Young University Feb. 5 and University of Utah Feb. 6. They invite everyone interested in the arts to attend this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to support the world of performing arts.
It is an exciting time for our universities and their students. During each performance several Utah dance students will perform with them.
The program presented by The Royal Ballet School and local students, will feature excerpts from famous ballets such as Napoli, LeCorsaire and Paquita. The students will also showcase the exciting choreography of Wayne McGregor, Robert Hill and Kirk Peterson. This exciting venture will reach a broad range of students and teachers throughout the state of Utah and community support will make the event even more memorable for all individuals involved.
The Royal Ballet School is the world’s leading vocational dance institution. The school attracts the very best ballet students from the United Kingdom and from other areas throughout the world. Students begin their training at the school at age 11 and continue through the age of 19.
In their final year of training, where the focus is specifically on performing, the graduate students have the opportunity to get a taste of professional life by working with The Royal Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet, which includes some of the best choreographers in dance today.
You can contact Karen Whiting at karenwhiting@hotmail.com for information on tickets for the Kearns High School performance. Contact the various university ticketing offices for performances.
If you need to contact the director of The Royal Ballet School, Gailene Norman or Jay Jolley, email at jayj@royalballetschool.co.uk.