The Artists

JAMES SEWELL (Co-Founder, Artistic Director, and Choreographer) A Minneapolis native, James studied the violin for nine years, and received his early dance training at the Children’s Theatre Company School. At age 17, he moved to New York and began dancing with ABT II. He studied at the School of American Ballet, and with David Howard for 15 years. He was a lead dancer with Feld Ballets/NY for six years. He also has performed as a guest artist with the New York City Ballet, Zvi Gottheiner and Dancers, and Denishawn, and has performed with improvisation artists Chris Aiken, Christian Burns, and Kirstie Simson.

                                                        Since 1982, James has choreographed more than
                                                        60 ballets, including 10 for which he composed
                                                        the music. More than a dozen companies in the
                                                        United States and Taiwan have performed his
                                                        ballets. Special projects have included the New
                                                        York City Ballet’s Choreographic Institute (2001,
                                                        2006); a New York State Council on the Arts
                                                        grant to create "Independence In Dependence"
                                                        (1990) for Feld Ballets/NY; "Aida" (1998) for the
                                                        Minnesota Opera and 11 other opera companies;
                                                        James Sewell Ballet’s "Amahl and the Night
                                                        Visitors" (1995); "Musical Toys" (1996) and
                                                        "Nutcracker: The Untold Story" (1997) for the
                                                        Minnesota Orchestra; and "She Loves Me" (2005)
                                                        and "1776" (2007) for the Guthrie Theater.

                                                        James also has received commissions, including
                                                        "Schoenberg Serenade" (2006) and "Passions"
                                                        (1998), a work with composer Augusta Read
                                                        Thomas, for the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra;
                                                        "Metamorphosis" (2004) for the Twin Cities
                                                        Gay Men’s Chorus; "Awedville" (2004) for the
                                                        Wharton Center for Performing Arts in East Lansing,
                                                        Michigan; and "Turf" (2006) for the Minnesota
                                                        Orchestra. James received a Bush Foundation Artist
                                                        Fellowship (2002), a Choo-San Goh Award for
                                                        Choreography from the Choo-San Goh & H.
                                                        Robert Magee Foundation (2006), and a McKnight
                                                        Artist Fellowship for Choreography (2007). He is a
                                                        past trustee of Dance/USA and a past director of the
                                                        American Composer’s Forum.
                                                        View Images

SALLY ROUSSE (Co-Founder and Dancer, 18th season) began dancing 35 years ago in Barre, Vermont. She trained at the School of American Ballet and with David Howard before performing as a leading dancer with Ballet Chicago, the Royal Ballet of Flanders, and James Sewell Ballet, which she helped establish in 1990. In addition to many roles in the classical and Balanchine repertoires, Sally has danced works by Maurice Béjart, Jiri Kylian, and more than 75 works created on her by contemporary choreographers. In 1994, she began studying and performing Improvisation and Contact, primarily with Patrick Scully and Chris Aiken, aiming to draw upon a larger movement palette to extend the definitions, aesthetics, and relevance of ballet and ballerina. She received a McKnight Fellowship for Dancers (2001). Sally's work as a choreographer has been supported by diverse venues and organizations: the Southern Theater, Walker Art Center, VocalEssence, Marshall Field's, Harvard's American Repertory Theatre, St. Paul's School, the Cartoon Channel, Nickelodeon, Omaha Ballet, James Sewell Ballet, 3-Legged Race, the Jerome Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the McKnight Foundation. She co-created the aerial/dance/theater pieces "Floor Show" (2003) with Homer Avila and "Awedville" (2004) with James Sewell. "Trickpony" (2002), her collaboration with Chelsea Bacon, headed the 2002 list of top 10 dance events in Minneapolis/St. Paul. Sally is the mother of Mona and Oliver Sewell. View Images

CAROLINE FERMIN (Dancer, 1st season) began her studies of ballet and modern dance in her native Louisiana, and graduated with a BFA degree from The Juilliard School (2007). In 2005, she received a grant to promote dance education in the Isle of Wight, U.K. In the spring of 2007, she organized a group of Juilliard students to travel to New Orleans to help rebuild, and to perform, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

View Images

PENELOPE FREEH (Artistic Associate and Dancer, 14th season) Originally from Ohio, Penny relocated to Minneapolis from New York City to join the James Sewell Ballet (1994). In 1998, she received a Minnesota State Arts Board Fellowship to study the Paul Taylor technique and repertory, and a McKnight Fellowship for Dancers. Since 1999, she has received choreographic  commissions from James Sewell Ballet (2003,2006), the Minnesota Orchestra, 3-Legged Race’s Blizzard, the Momentum series of the Walker Art Center / Southern Theater, and the Weisman Art Museum (2005). Her work was presented by New York City’s Ballet Builders (2000, 2002), and she has mounted a full evening of her work at the Southern Theater (2005). Penny publishes her thoughts on dance at www.barefootpenny.blogspot.com. For more background about Penelope, click here. View Images

JUSTIN LEAF (Dancer, 7th season) was introduced to dance by Lauran Clowser in Hagerstown, Maryland. He continued his training at Goucher College, the Pacific Northwest Ballet School, and the Juilliard School, where he received his BFA (2001). He also studied privately with Andra and Ernesta Corvino. His performance credits include the Juilliard Dance Ensemble, Nederlands Dans Theater, and Pacific Northwest Ballet. Justin won the Zaraspe Prize for his choreography at Juilliard. His choreographic credits include works for the James Sewell Ballet as part of the Ballet Works Project (2003, 2007) and the Weisman Art Museum (2005). With collaborator Brooke Murphy, Justin established The Mendicants, a performing ensemble exploring works that bridge music, dance, and theater. Most recently, The Mendicants created "Broadway Bound…and Gagged" for performances at the Bryant-Lake Bowl Theater in Minneapolis (2006, 2007). View Images

NICOLAS LINCOLN (Dancer, 3rd season), a native of Grand Rapids, Michigan, attended the Interlochen Arts Academy, and studied on scholarship with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and the summer programs of the Joffrey Ballet and Boston Ballet. He performed corps and soloist roles as a member of the Grand Rapids Ballet, Dayton Ballet, and Cleveland San Jose Ballet. Nicolas also has performed as a guest with Frankfurt Ballet Theatre, Gratz Ballet (Austria), and Madrid's La Compañia de Juan Carlos Santa Maria. Nicolas participated in the National Choreographers' Initiative in Irvine, California (2006), where he originated roles by Graham Lustig and Ron De Jesus. His choreographic credits include the Midstates Regional Dance Festival (three times), Grand Rapids Ballet, and Flint Youth Ballet..

EMILY TYRA (Dancer, 2nd season), a Minnesota
native, received her ballet training at Ballet Arts
Minnesota under the direction of Bonnie Mathis.
She has studied on scholarship with the summer
programs of American Ballet Theatre, Boston
Ballet, and the Boston Ballet's year-round
program. Emily has performed previously with
Boston Ballet, and as a guest on James Sewell
Ballet's tour to Iceland (2006). For the past six years,
she has been studying voice with Kenny Kiser and
Judith Melander.







                                                        KEVIN A. JONES (Lighting Designer and
                                                        Production Manager, 15th season) has worked
                                                        behind the scenes of dance and theater for
                                                        more than 25 years. His designs for JAMES
                                                        SEWELL BALLET include "Moving Works,"
                                                        "Barrage," "The High Rock Project," "Good
                                                        Mourning," "Involution," "Made In America,"
                                                        "Nirvana Dharma," "Billy’s Bed: A Terpsitoon,"
                                                        "Loves Remembered," "Swan Pond," "Zenas,"
                                                        "Anagram," "Klezmer Dances," "Appalachia
                                                        Waltz," and "Mendelssohn Trio." Previously,
                                                        Kevin worked with Minnesota Dance Theatre,
                                                        Ballet Arts Minnesota, Zenon Dance Company,
                                                        JAZZDANCE by Danny Buraczeski, as well as
                                                        many others.



OTHER ARTISTS ASSOCIATED WITH JSB OVER THE YEARS