On Wednesday, April 21, The Press Club welcomes Roy Kaiser as the guest speaker at The Newtown Grille. Kaiser is celebrating his 30th year with Pennsylvania Ballet and his 15th as Artistic Director. Under his tenure, the Company has added more than 60 new works to its repertoire, including 25 World Premieres and 37 Company Premieres. 

Kaiser joined Pennsylvania Ballet in 1979, and was subsequently promoted to Soloist and Principal Dancer. In 1987, while still performing, Kaiser was appointed Assistant Ballet Master and was later named Ballet Master upon his retirement from performing in 1992.  In October 1993, he was appointed Associate Artistic Director of the Company under the leadership of Christopher d’Amboise and later succeeded him as Artistic Director in February 1995. 

Kaiser is often invited to be a guest instructor and has served on numerous dance panels, including those of the National Endowment of the Arts and the Princess Grace Foundation.  He also served on the 2002 jury of the International Ballet Competition in Varna, Bulgaria.  Most recently, Kaiser was invited to join the New York Choreographic Institute as a member of its Artistic Committee.

Upcoming Pennsylvania Ballet Performance
Romeo and Juliet ~ June 4 – 12, 2010
Academy of Music

Luminous in its power and poignancy, John Cranko’s Romeo and Juliet is set to Sergei Prokofiev’s famous musical score. The ballet version of Shakespeare’s famous tale established Cranko as a master story teller, using powerful music and pristine movements to explore the powerful relationship between the two title characters. When Pennsylvania Ballet last produced Romeo and Juliet in 2005, The Philadelphia Inquirer said it was a “sumptuous production” that keeps audiences “fully engaged and at times transfixed.”