Hundreds of ballet dancers — ages 8 to 18 — are competing through the weekend in Bellevue for a chance to earn scholarships from leading dance schools around the globe. The dancers are participating in workshops, competitions and dance classes at the Theatre at Meydenbauer Center.
The Youth American Grand Prix (YAGP) regional semi-finals will send a number of competitors to the finals in New York.
Among the judges will be Phillip Broomhead (former Royal Ballet Principal), Patricia Barker (former Pacific NorthWest Ballet principal), Carla Korbes (principal dancer with Pacific NorthWest Ballet), and Stephanie Saland (former soloist with New York City Ballet).
The organization was founded by Larissa Saveliev who trained at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy in Moscow and toured throughout the world before defecting to the United States in 1995. She Saveliev stages classical ballet productions around the country.
