A Step Above the Rest....

As Ballet Yuma celebrates its 14th Season, it is carving its place as a prismatic focal point of the city's cultural life and aspirations. Kathleen Sinclair and Jon Cristofori, Artistic Directors for Ballet Yuma, have trained their dancers to such an incredible degree of technical and creative heights, elevating them to prominence and a higher standard and setting them apart from the crowd. Anyone who's spent a charmed afternoon or an enchanted evening at a Ballet Yuma performance will find it hard to disagree. The urban arts experience is here!    Ballet Yuma is a company that is both classically based and cutting-edge, artistically disciplined and infectiously spirited, nationally significant and uniquely Yuman. Renowned for a remarkable attention to technical and creative imagery, works include original ballets by Jon Cristofori, commissioned works from innovative young choreographers (some of whom were given their first regional exposure by Ballet Yuma), meticulous reconstructions of early 20th-century masterworks and wonderfully colorful and exhilarating productions for children. Through its community outreach programs, Ballet Yuma brings dance and arts education to the Yuma public schools, presenting full-length storybook ballets in the Spring and the full-length version of The Nutcracker during the holiday season.

Further setting us apart is the fact that Ballet Yuma is currently the only company in the entire state of Arizona to belong to the prestigious organization Regional Dance America, and has achieved and maintained Honor Company status, the highest level for a preprofessional company.  We are proud to represent Yuma with such high achievements, and are excited to give back to our community!

Ballet Yuma is able to provide our local dancers with individual opportunities in the area of dance scholarships and employment with Internationally recognized professional dance companies. Several graduates of Ballet Yuma have gone on to have professional careers with such prestigious companies as Sacramento Ballet, Les Ballet Trockadero de Monte Carlo, San Francisco Ballet, Ballet Memphis, Miami City Ballet, Texas Ballet Theater, Atlanta Ballet and Louisville Ballet among others. All are distinguished professionals whom have taken the training they received with Ballet Yuma and translated it into their own personal success story.

For over a decade, Ballet Yuma has been the epitome of classical ballet at its finest, with amazing dancers whose grace, skill, and athleticism are incomparable. 2007 marks the 25th Anniversary of Jon Cristofori and Kathleen Sinclair's version of "The Nutcracker", Yuma's longest running annual production. It is sure to be a spectacular affair that you won't want to miss - come and discover the magic of Ballet Yuma!

Celebrating 14 Years of Unparalled Excellence!

Our Mission
The Mission of Ballet Yuma is twofold: the development of programs that

1) train and provide professional performance venues for gifted dancers, and

2) provide opportunities for all local dance students to enjoy the educational benefits available through discipline in a major art form.

Ballet Yuma serves the community through outreach programs in the public schools to introduce the art of ballet to all students, and funds a scholarship discovery program for talented underserved youth who would not otherwise be able to experience the world of ballet.

Ballet Yuma provides Yuma and the surrounding communities with a high quality, pre-professional ballet company, showcasing the area's most gifted dancers. The company strives to maintain a standard of excellence as set by Regional Dance America.

Our History
For the past twenty-five years, Jon Cristofori and Kathleen Sinclair have set the standard for dance excellence in our community. From 1982-1993, as the directors of Yuma Ballet Theatre, they took a small group of inexperienced dancers and developed one of the finest regional ballet companies in the United States. Jon and Kathleen enabled the company to attain Honor status with Regional Dance America, one of the highest achievements possible for a youth ballet company.

With the establishment of Ballet Yuma, Regional Dance America bestowed Honor Company status to Ballet Yuma dancers, and Jon Cristofori and Kathleen Sinclair, in May, 1995. Ballet Yuma continues to be Arizona's only Regional Honor Company. Dancers working under their tutelage have gone on to dance professionally in major ballet companies across the nation, to include Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, American Ballet Theatre, Boston Ballet, Ballet West, Sacramento Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, Texas Ballet Theatre, Miami City Ballet and others. Ballet Yuma students have also received fully funded scholarships from such prestigious summer programs as Houston Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, Boston Ballet, Atlanta Ballet, St. Louis Ballet, Utah Regional Ballet, Joffrey Ballet and the Craft of Choreography Conference, to name a few.

Currently, Ballet Yuma consists of sixteen Company dancers ranging in age from 12 to 18, who train and rehearse 6 days a week.