Shelby Elsbree
Boston Ballet, 03/2013-Present
Royal Danish Ballet, 02/2009-03/2013
Training
School of American Ballet 2004-2009
Peter Martins, Kay Mazzo, Susan Pilarre,
Suki Schorer, Katrina Killian, Darci Kistler
Jock Soto, Sean Lavery, Garielle Whittle.
Sarasota Ballet of Florida 2003-2004
Florida Ballet Arts Academy 2000-2003
Repertoire
Boston Ballet:
George Balanchine's Symphony in 3 Movements, corps de ballet, John F. Kennedy Center's Dance Across America, June 2013
George Balanchine's Coppelia, Waltz Variation, Swanilda's Friends, corps de ballet, May 2013
George Balanchine's Serenade, Russian Girls, corps de ballet, May 2013
George Balanchine's Symphony in C, corps de ballet, May 2013
Marius Petipa's The Sleeping Beauty, corps de ballet, March 2013
Royal Danish Ballet:
Marius Petipa (adapted by Nikolaj Hübbe's) La Bayadere, Pas de Quatre, Shades. February-March 2013, November 2012.
Flemming Flindt's The Lesson, as 'The Pupil', January 2013, February-March 2012, September 2011
Christopher Wheeldon’s Sleeping Beauty, Song Fairy, Temperament Fairy, corps de ballet, November/December 2012, November/December 2010
Alexei Ratmansky's The Golden Cockerel (created on), as the Golden Cockerel, (Opera House) October 2012.
Yuri Possokhov's Narcissum (created on), Royal Danish Playhouse (Skuespilhuset), May 2012.
August Bournonville's Flower Festival in Genzano, National Art Museum, Copenhagen, Denmark. May 2012.
George Balanchine's Symphony in 3 Movements, corps de ballet, April/May 2012.
John Neumeier's Lady of the Camellias, Olympia, Rococo Pair, March/April 2012.
August Bournonville adapted by Nikolaj Hubbe’s Napoli, Balabile, corps de ballet; Palais Garnier Opera, Paris France. January 2012
George Balanchine's The Nutcracker, Lead Marzipan, Columbine Doll, Snow, Flowers, Chinese Tea, December 2011
Jerome Robbins' The Concert, Gossip Girl; The Cage, corps de ballet; West Side Story, Cool October 2011
George Balanchine's Donizetti, corps de ballet October 2011
August Bournonville adapted by Nikolaj Hübbe and Sorella Englund’s La Sylphide, corps de ballet USA Tour, David Koch Theater June 2011, Det Kongelige Teater September 2011
Harald Lander’s Etudes, demi-soloist, White Tutu May 2011, October 2011
Johan Kobborg’s Les Lutins & Salute (“Alumnus”) May 2011
August Bournonville’s Conservatoire, corps de ballet May 2011
August Bournonville adapted by Nikolaj Hubbe’s A FolkTale, corps de ballet March/April 2011, February 2012
Erik Bruhn Prize Competition, Toronto, Canada: August Bournonville’s Flower Festival in Genanzo March 2011
Peter Martin’s Swan Lake, Pas de Trois, 4 Swans, corps de ballet September 2010
George Balanchine’s Serenade, corps de ballet, 4 Russian Girls May/June 2010, October 2010, February 2011
Louise Miljord’s Othello, Emilia March 2010
John Neumeier’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, corps de ballet March 2010, January 2011
Kenneth Greve’s The Nutcracker, corps de ballet December 2009
August Bournonville adapted by Nikolaj Hubbe’s Giselle, corps de ballet October 2009
August Bournonville adapted by Nikolaj Hubbe’s Napoli, Balabile, corps de ballet November 2009, October 2010
Jerome Robbins’ Dances at a Gathering, Blue Girl September 2009
West Side Story, corps de ballet, demi solo September 2009
Marius Petipa’s Don Quixote, corps de ballet April 2009
George Balanchine’s Symphony in C, 2nd and 4th Movement, corps de ballet March 2009, January 2010
Symphony in 3 Movements, 8 Girls Dance March 2009
New York City Ballet’s Spring Choreographic Insitute:
-Choreography by Kiyon Gaines, corps dancer with Pacific Northwest Ballet; March 2008
Susan Stroman’s Double Feature; A Ballet in Two Acts:
-Performed as a Bride with the New York City Ballet at the New York State Theatre January/February 2008
New York City Ballet’s Fall Choreographic Institute:
-Choreography by Jiri Bubenicek, Principal Dancer with Dresden SemperOper Ballet; October 2007
George Balanchine’s Serenade (first movement corps):
-Performed with New York City Ballet at the New York State Theatre; June 2007
Christopher Wheeldon’s Scènes de Ballet:
-Performed at the New York State Theatre in program with New York City Ballet; Winter 2006
George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker in Stamford, Connecticut:
-Snow and Lead Marzipan; December 2007
-Boy Doll and Chinese; December 2006
School of American Ballet’s Workshop:
-George Balanchine’s Gounod Symphony (Corps de ballet) and Four Temperaments; (2nd Theme, and demi-soloist in Melancholic); June 2007
-Christopher Wheeldon’s Scenes de Ballet and George Balanchine’s Bourree Fantasque (Corps de ballet); June 2006
School of American Ballet’s Lecture Demonstrations:
-Jock Soto’s Partnering Demonstration; White Swan Pas de deux w/ fellow student: 2005
-Katrina Killian’s Class Demonstration; Fall 2004
School of American Ballet’s Student Choreographic Workshop:
-Choreographed on by fellow student in “Drum Majorette”; Fall 2006
Stiefel and Students Summer Performance:
-Marius Petipa’s Frescoes and George Balanchine’s Stars and Stripes (short girl regiment in finale); August 2005
-Bournonville’s Napoli (3rd Variation) August 2006
New York City Ballet;
-Chosen by Peter Martins to understudy Juliet in Peter Martins’s world premiere of Romeo and Juliet
Jubilaium’s Fonden Recipient June 2010
Royal Danish Ballet Union Award May 2011
Erik Bruhn Prize Competitor March 2011. Flower Festival in Genzano,
National Ballet of Canada, Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts
Jose Correño Dance Festival Faculty, Sarasota, Fl August 2011
Sarasota Ballet Summer Intensive Faculty, Sarasota, Fl July 2012
Creations
Christopher Wheeldon's Sleeping Beauty, Fairy of Song, December 2012
Yuri Possokhov's 'Narcissum,' ensemble. Royal Danish Playhouse, May 2012.
Alexei Ratmansky's The Golden Cockerel, the Golden cockerel. October 2012
Devoted Readers & Dearest Friends…dare you forgive me for my absence? I’ll suffice to say that since we last met, my journeys have taken me from the village of Coppelia in the Boston Opera House, Serenade-ing in a Castle for the Balanchine Ball and most recently, a brief Symphony in 3, Dance Across America at Washington DC’s Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts…Remember my last visit to the Nation’s Capital?
Needless to say I’ve been kept on my toes, but thinking of you all the while… Sometimes there seems to be more time in tutus than cups of tea… My travels have kept me further from the kitchen than I would prefer, but I hope to have some culinary contributions in the coming months of my favorite season… June! Can you believe it? Half the year has come and gone and at long last, the dulcet tones of sweet summer nights are greeting us longingly… I love waking up at 7 and feeling rested because the sun’s been awake for hours before me… the birds chirping and the smell of afternoon thunder storms…
Enough said and done, I’ll leave you with some captured coziness of a recent dinner party and some fun links to share the latest happenings of life at the Ballet…Enjoy, I’ll be back soon!
My Interview at the Kennedy Center!
Images of me were taken by the lovely Jack & Tina Fussell. Check out their beautiful work here! …and another little insta gallery below from yours truly…
It’s a rainy Thursday in BeanTown…Alas I think it’s time for tea :)
peace&patience.
~p.e.
Well who doesn’t love another cup of cruciferous juiciferous to start there day..? Ever since my parents christened my new kitchen counters with a Vitamix blender I can guarantee you two things: 1. Not one leaf of spinach/kale/celery…slice of apple/banana/pear/lemon…chunk of fresh ginger or frozen pineapple..spoonful of chia/hemp/flaxseed has gone to waste… and 2. My daily allotment of seasonally peaked produce has no less than tripled….dare I say quadrupled? It’s a fun word anyways…right up there with cruciferous…am I right? ;) Go on…say it aloud. Start your day with a smile & a tall glass of green juice ~
While there are more than enough recipes out there to inspire your drinkable multivitamin, I thought I might share my personal fave breakfast of champions here — with 3 more performances of Chroma this weekend, I can count on this power packed sustenance to get me through… followed by copious amounts of the obvious…protein…carbs…and chocolate.
Combine a generous amount of Spinach leaves and Kale with 2-3 cups of water. Blend until smooth.
Add in your choice of fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds… I used celery, avocado, apple, banana, ginger, lemon, frozen blueberries and pineapple, a handful of walnuts, a sprinkle of hemp seeds.
I like to combine my ‘green monster’ with a splash of fresh carrot juice for a smoother texture and I find the natural sweetness of the carrots cuts the (sometimes) bitter kale quite famously…
So are you green with envy..? Bottoms UP!
Below, a little instagallery of long days in the studio/backstage at the ballet…
~p.e.
The past few weeks here in the Hub have allowed us all to get a little stronger a grasp on our surroundings…perspective shifting events are never in vain, and the way we react to them is our testament to humanity — to the people we love and know, to the people we love and don’t know – Krystle Campbell, Lü Lingzi, Martin Richard and Sean Collier among so many others… The persevering people of this city carry on with unshakable rhythm.
Yesterday I ventured down Boylston for the first time since it was ‘given back to Boston’ this past Monday, the one week memorial of the Marathon explosions… As the street filled up once again with refined humility, the sun shown relentlessly over the faces of all who I passed…a walk through the Boston Commons….a stroll up Beacon Hill…a stop by Quincy Market…Boston has proven itself to be a Hub of Hope time and time again ~ a revolutionary city with painstaking history and unprecedented recovery…Think infamous Tea Party’s and Midnight Rides…Each test of faith ingraining itself into the brick-paved streets we walk upon each day. Humbled terrain that while shaken is only made stronger.
Over at the ballet we’ve been rehearsing for our upcoming Spring program with heavy hearts…Our response to violence?
“…to make music more intensely, more beautifully, more devotedly than ever before.” –Leonard Bernstein
…I know my posts these days have been mildly less frequent…I suppose I’m taking advantage of these longer spring days outside…the thrill of getting to know a city and its people. Needless to say the dancing/cooking/performing/baking/exploring persists…and I do so hope you’ll continue to join in on the fun :)
Let’s make music friends.
~p.e.
*If you’d like to help victims of the Boston Marathon Bombings, The One Fund was established to contribute to those most tragically affected…Click here to help.
*The Dance pictures in this post come from the lovely Tina & Jack Fussell over at Flying House …the others of course by the tireless Little Chef.
It’s hard to believe that an entire month has come and gone since I’ve settled into this lovely ‘Hub’ of happiness…I’ve enjoyed the opportunity to find a new normal, explore new spaces, stages, faces….Each day brings a fresh breath of freedom & faith, march & melody that leave me brimful of gratitude on my daily walk home…The ‘friendliest walker city in the country’ is an open playing field of bone chilling history and breathtaking beauty, which I’ve enjoyed getting to know in these past few weeks…and which I look so forward to sharing with you in this new, spontaneous mini-series of getting to know {Boston} posts here on Tutus&Tea.
As an effort to reach out and network myself here in Bean Town I signed up to join the Boston Brunchers for a Sunday morning of delicious food and inspiring company. This lovely, rotating group of foodie enthusiasts and friends gathers on a monthly basis to network the Boston food blogging community ~ Brunch & Blogging..? I had to see (and taste) for myself!
This past Sunday we savored shared plates of crisp citrus salads, poached eggs on beds of vegetable hash, and eggs benedict among other noble selections at The Fireplace - a cozy, corner restaurant in Brookline that boasts attentive service and gourmet comfort food plated with eloquence. Considering brunch to be one of my all time favorite meals of the week, this was no less than the perfect way to make new friends, explore a new neighborhood, and to share tidbits about this city with other motivated bloggers trying to get to know Boston.
Who doesn’t love a creative gathering…new friends & flavors? Here’s hoping I’ll have many a more BostonBrunch to share with you all between my time in Tutus & generous sips of Tea.
Thank you to The Fireplace & the lovely ladies I feel blessed to call new friends!
~p.e.
*Since I dined with the BostonBrunchers, I had the pleasure of enjoying this meal free of charge ~ The generosity of this cozy café in no way influenced this post, as my thoughts and tastebuds ring true to my palate’s content :)
As the heart wrenching numbers rise, our nation bands together to face the tragic Boston Marathon Bombings which occurred today as true champions of hope crossed the finished line in Copley Square. There is no rhyme or reason to justify why such monstrosities strike in our lives…and with this post, my heart and prayers go out to this incredible city — the victim of an impossible reality— and those who have been affected, however directly, by this attack..
May we be strengthened by the support, empathy and undying faith of our neighbors, community, city, country….
My forever love ~ p.e.
Dearest readers,
I write you from my new home in ‘the hub‘…where Fenway Park neighbors the house of Paul Revere, brick brownstones line the historic streets and baseball guarantees passionate conversation… I nearly forgot how quickly time flies after an international move! Do forgive me the temporary absence…
In lieu of writing I’ve been unpacking, furniture shopping, and navigating my new neighborhood in between rehearsals and performances of The Sleeping Beauty at the Boston Opera House – A 2,677 seat theater that claims the stage I’ll learn to know and love…
I’m humbled to share that I’ve been welcomed with open arms by the talented dancers of the Boston Ballet ~ a company of unbelievable talent that has already opened my eyes to new heights of aspiration…
Here’s to new beginnings in Boston ~ The next Chapter of Tutus, Tea & me :)
Click to enlarge my little ‘insta’ gallery below and stay tuned for more!
~p.e.
p.s. Hop on over to Flying House to see how to Dress like a {ballerina} and more photos from my shoot with Jack & Tina!
Alas, I am at a loss for words for the greatest/saddest/hardest sendoff I could have ever imagined… To the colleagues, friends and family who I”ve had the pleasure of working/dancing/laughing/crying/living with in this incredible city of Copenhagen – This is only the end of the beginning. I love you all and look so forward to the days when our paths cross again. A lovely, big, Tusind Tak for all of the gifts, cards, words, hugs, and support for this transition in my life and career.
You are truly one of a kind Royal Danish Ballet ~ I’m forever honored and humbled to have contributed to the magic at DKT. With love and endless gratitude, Shelby
During my final week in Copenhagen, I have the pleasure of being featured on Flying House by TravelingMama ~ The blog of a lovely, spirit-filled family, who I had the honor of meeting during my time abroad.
Today’s post tells my story thru the captivating lens of Tina and her husband Jack (Traveling Tribe)- a dream team of inspiration, motivation and simply brilliant people.
Pop on over to Flying House for an interview and more photos from our story…a simple, Scandinavian setting, with just enough edge & tulle to wrap up the hygge Danish Chapter of my career in Copenhagen… Enjoy! I sure did :)
Photo Credit: Jack & Tina Fussell of Flying House
A couple more performances and it’s a wrap on this end ~ More soon :)
danish whimsy & wonder~ p.e.
In the past 196 posts here on Tutus&Tea, I have savored the opportunity to grow along side each of you…sharing in this incredible chapter of my career that has brought me nearly 5,000 miles across the great Atlantic to pursue my dreams of dancing through life..I moved to Copenhagen exactly 4 years ago to join the Royal Danish Ballet, and needless to say, my ‘college experience’ here has only encouraged the eternal student in me – forever thirsty to keep exploring the world…meeting new people, discovering new cultures, sights, stages, styles of dance….new flavors, favorites, frames of reality. It seems like yesterday that I embraced the cobblestoned streets of Copenhagen for the first time, bewildered by the beauty of Scandinavian simplicity and beginning work in a theater older than the country I call home…As I sit here reminiscing, scrolling through pictures of European Brunches & Ballets, I’m simply overwhelmed by the true splendor of it all…which leaves me pondering the concept of time. How quickly it comes and goes….what we make of it….how we let it intimidate us and inspire us all at once.. It seems like the one thing besides the weather that we seek control over, yet it remains forever out of reach.
Today I’m here to tell you that my current Copenhagen Chapter is fast coming to an end, as this coming March will mark the beginning of my career with the Boston Ballet. While a variety of factors contributed to this change, I’m happy and so thankful to share that it was breed solely by positive ingredients for personal pursuit and growth. My experience here in darling Denmark remains untainted..leaving me with only the highest respect for this charming city and the people in it…who I feel so blessed to have called my colleagues, and whom I’ll forever call my cherished friends and family.
A couple of weeks ago I found myself walking along the streets of Paris, alone with my camera and my thoughts. I crossed the Pont des Arts bridge over the Seine and the word ‘enriched‘ kept surfacing in my mind as I took in 360 degrees of breathtaking European charm. I became teary eyed and nostalgic to think that this is what I’ll soon be leaving, but was quickly comforted by the notion that once you’ve been exposed to something so life changing – your life is just that – forever changed. I know that I will soon find myself back in Europe for whatever reasons life may avail..I will think back on the times I was lucky enough to call Copenhagen home and naturally, will do my best to carry the ideals of joie de vivre and moins c’est plus back over the ocean with my pointe shoes & flea market finds…
I would like to take this moment to thank all of the incredible people who’ve made my time here as precious as it ever could have been….and to invite you to join me on this next adventure ~ to see what kind of Tea Party Boston will have in store for this petite épicurienne & her little chef…who’s on board?
“To embark on the journey towards your goals and dreams requires bravery. To remain on that path requires courage. The bridge that merges the two is commitment.” -Steve Maraboli
memory wound & boston bound…p.e.