This is the first time that artists from different San Diego companies come together to be part of a project to honor a local legend of dance. Maxine Mahon
Remembrances of California Ballet Repertoire
Dancer's Bios
 

Ariana Gonzalez received her training primarily from her parents Steven and Elizabeth Wistrich. She also trained extensively with Kelsey Kirkland, David Howard, and Fernando Bujones. As a principal dancer with the City Ballet of San Diego, she has danced such roles as the Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker, Giselle in the full-length Giselle, Kitri in the full-length Don Quixote, Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Carmen in Carmen, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, Esmeralda in Esmeralda and the Hunchback, the title roles in Swan Lake, La Baydere, Spartacus Pas de Deux, Grand Pas Classique, and Carmina Burana. Additionally, she has been danced leading roles in works by George Balanchine, including Tchaikovsky Pas de Deux, Agon, Valse Fantaisie, Who Cares? , Serenade, Divertimento No. 15, Apollo, The Four Temperaments, Rubies, Walpurgisnacht Ballet, Tarantella, Emeralds, Sonatine and Concerto Barocco. In 2017 she danced the lead roles in the company’s premiere of Jerome Robbins’ Afternoon of a Faun and Peter Martins’ Hallelujah Junction and his Ash. After a season with Atlanta Ballet and three seasons as a company artist with the Joffrey Ballet, under the direction of Gerald Arpino. Ariana toured all over the world with the company and performed in theater’s such as the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, and the Koch Theater at Lincoln Center in New York City. While at Joffrey Ballet, Ariana performed in many ballets including Gerald Arpino’s Viva Vivaldi, Clowns, Robert Joffrey’s The Nutcracker, Jerome Robbins’ New York Export Opus Jazz, Anthony Tudor’s Dark Elegies, Fredrick Ashton’s The Dream, Fokine’s Petroushka, George Balanchine’s Square Dance, and Nijinsky’s Le Sacre de Printemps. She is the artistic director and dancer in City Ballet’s On the Move performance series. Ariana is married to City Ballet Resident Choreographer Geoff Gonzalez.

Victoria Jenkins is a San Diego native who began ballet at the age of 5. She studied at California Ballet until she was 15 then received a scholarship to attend the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School in Winnipeg, Canada. She joined the Royal Winnipeg Ballet company at 18 and enjoyed working with many different choreographers and touring the United States and Canada. She relocated back to San Diego at 20 and joined the California Ballet and later Golden State Ballet and has performed for Grand American Ballet. Notable roles include Nikiya La Bayadere, White Swan Pas de Deux, Kitri Don Quixote, Aurora Sleeping Beauty, and Sugarplum Grand pas from the Nutcracker. Among her other achievements she graduated with distinction from the Royal Winnipeg Ballet school, is certified yoga instructor and ballet teacher for the ages 3-16

Megan Jacobs is from Petaluma, CA where she received classical ballet training at North Coast Ballet California from Tamara Statkoun (former ballerina with Mikhailovsky Theatre).  She later trained at San Francisco Ballet, Boston Ballet, and Pacific Northwest Ballet where she received a full scholarship to attend the company’s pre-professional program.
In her professional career at City Ballet of San Diego, Megan has danced various soloist and principal roles including Mercedes in Don Quixote, Goddess of Fortune in Geoff Gonzalez’s Carmina Burana, and Myrtha in Giselle.  She has also danced in twelve ballets by George Balanchine at City Ballet and in the San Diego premieres of Peter Martins’ Ash and Hallelujah Junction.  Her featured Balanchine works include Solo Girl in Rubies, Dark Angel in Serenade, Choleric in The Four Temperaments, Embraceable You in Who Cares?, Second Principal Pas de Deux in Emeralds, and Principal Pas de Deux in Agon.

 

Madalynn Scheffel, originally from Parker, Colorado, began dancing at the age of twelve near her hometown in Castle Rock, Colorado, where she trained in many styles of dance. In 2017, she joined Colorado Ballet’s Pre Professional Division to continue her training under Erica Fischbach, previously from American Ballet Theatre, and Maria Mosina, former principal of Colorado Ballet. While there, Madalynn performed in multiple productions with both the school and company in The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, Giselle, Coppélia, Pigtail Girl in Graduation Ball, Antony Tudor’s Pillar of Fire, and Twyla Tharp’s Movin’ Out.
Madalynn joined City Ballet of San Diego in 2020 and was recently promoted to Company Artist for the upcoming 2023-2024 season. Since joining City Ballet she has enjoyed performing in the company’s productions of A Masquerade Nutcracker, Paquita, La Bayadère, The Nutcracker, Don Quixote, Le Baiser de la Fée, Geoff Gonzalez’s Battu, Romeo and Juliet, and Betsey Wistrich’s Beyond the Circle.

 

Shannon Romeo began her early training at Olympic Ballet in Edmonds, WA under Helen Wilkins and Tatiana Cater. She then went on to dance in the Professional Division at Pacific Northwest Ballet, performing in the company ballets, including The Nutcracker, Don Quixote, and Swan Lake. Shannon then accepted a corps de ballet contract with Los Angeles Ballet in 2013, where she danced in George Balanchine’s Serenade and Stars and Stripes. She has also danced professionally with Nashville Ballet 2 and Sarasota Ballet, dancing in ballets choreographed by Gina Patterson, Robert North and Sir Fredrick Ashton. Shannon joined City Ballet of San Diego in 2018 as an Apprentice and has since performed in numerous company productions. Her highlights include dancing Clara and the Sugar Plum Fairy in Elizabeth’s Wistrich’s The Nutcracker, Elegies, Rhapsody in Blue, La Bayadere, Don Quixote, the First Theme in George Balanchine’s The Four Temperaments, a demi-soloist in his Walpurgisnacht Ballet and in his Danses Concertantes. She performed in On the Move and the Company’s virtual productions Moving Forward, A Masquerade Nutcracker, Rhapsody in Blue and Raymonda during the 2020-21 Season. Shannon was promoted to Company Artist in 2021, and is thrilled to start her sixth season with CBSD.

 

Caley Hernandez began dancing at the age of eight and at thirteen became the youngest member of the dance company La Diego II.  Caley went on to earn scholarships at The Academy of Performing Arts for professional training and she performed in San Diego Ballet’s Nutcracker before moving to the Pacific Northwest.  She danced professionally at Polaris Dance Theatre, trained at Northwest Dance Project and The Portland Ballet, and participated in film and other dance projects.  Caley returned to San Diego as a company dancer, choreographer, and instructor for Visionary Dance Theatre in 2018 and in 2020 also became the Studio Manager.  She has performed in San Diego Dance Theatre’s Young Choreographer’s Showcase, Jason Mraz’s 2020 musical production Shine, and La Jolla Playhouse’s 2021 Pop-Up WOW Festival.  In 2022, Caley made her directorial debut with an original production, The Nutcracker: In A Nutshell, for Visionary Dance Theatre.  This year Caley performed as a featured dancer in the rock musical, Light My Fire, and presented new choreography for The Gathering hosted by Kevin Jenkins and Ballet Counterpointe.

 

Natalie Palmgren was born and raised in Sonoma Valley. She started dancing at the age of four at Sonoma Conservatory of Dance. In 2016, she began attending Marin Dance Theater where she studied under Margaret Swarthout, and Joanna Berman. After several years dancing in Marin, Natalie entered UC Irvine as a dance major. During her time at UCI, she studied with many distinct professors including Lar Lubovitch, Vitor Luiz and Tong Wang. Natalie also performed and choreographed for numerous department shows before graduating in 2022 with two BFA degrees in Dance Performance and Dance Choreography. Natalie is currently a freelance dancer in California performing with various dance companies including Ballet Red, Oakland Ballet, and Pacific Ballet Dance Theater.
 

Claire Ley began her ballet training at Theater School of Dance in Louisiana, under Emily Seale. While there, she completed the Royal Academy of Dance Examinations. Claire furthered her training by attending summer programs at Houston Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet Theater, Oklahoma City Ballet, and Texas Ballet Theater. Her professional journey started with Texas Ballet Theater Studio Training Company. After two years, Claire was promoted to the full company under Ben Stevenson OBE. While with the company, she performed in Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, Pinocchio, Beauty and The Beast, The Nutcracker, and Ben Stevenson’s Nutty Nutcracker. In 2020, Claire joined City Ballet of San Diego as a Trainee. She was promoted to Apprentice the following year. Presently, Claire is in her first season as a Company Artist. Since joining City Ballet, she has enjoyed performing in the company’s productions of Still World Turning Again, Four Seasons, La Bayadere, Don Quixote, Paquita, Raymonda, The Nutcracker, and Gottschalk Festival and George Balanchine’s Danses Concertantes

 

Lester Gonzalez graduated from the National Ballet School of Havana, Cuba. In 2011, he joined the Ballet Laura Alonso as a company dancer. He later decided to emigrate to the United States with his siblings with the desire to expand his professional opportunities.
Throughout his career, he has performed diverse roles from the classical and contemporary repertoire, including lead roles in Septime Webre’s The Great Gatsby and Fluctuating Hemlines. While dancing with Ballet San Antonio, he performed as Romeo in Edwaard Liang’s Romeo and Juliet. Lester was featured in productions with the San Diego Opera, Arizona Opera, and the LA Opera. He was invited to perform at the final gala of Yucatan Dance Stage in Mexico, in 2019. He is a former company dancer of the Dayton Ballet and has danced for Grand American Ballet. Lester is now a freelance dancer and enjoys performing nationally and internationally.

Born in Goiânia, Brazil, Murillo moved to the U.S. at a young age. Murillo received his initial ballet training from Steps of Faith dance studio. Then received the upmost training from Orlando Molina, Daet Rodriguez, Magit Peguero and Ashleyanne Hensley at The School of The Georgia Ballet. Murillo has also received training from the Milwaukee Ballet and Oklahoma City Ballet. He began his professional dance career as an apprentice at The Georgia Ballet. The following year joining the corps de ballet with the company until he was promoted to principal.  He was a member of Ballet Collective of San Diego and is now dancing as a principal artist at Golden State Ballet.
Murillo has had the opportunity to dance in various ballets such as Coppelia, The Cavalier and Snow King in The Nutcracker, John Darling in Peter Pan, La Sylphide, Prince Siegfried in Swan Lake, Escamillo in Carmen Suite, Actaeon in Diana and Actaeon, La Fille mal Gardeé, Brom in Sleepy Hollow, and Paquita.  He has also enjoyed performing in regional musicals such as On your feet! At Moonlight Amphitheater and Cats directed by Baayork Lee and Choreographed by Jacob Brent at City Springs Theatre

Lucas Ataide, a native of Brazil, began studying at Sol Ballet School under the direction of Patrícia Dantas and Alex Aleixo. He continued his training at the Escola Estadual de Dança Maria Olenewa in Rio de Janerio and later was accepted into the Conservatório Brasileiro de Dança. In 2010, Mr. Ataíde joined the Brazilian Ballet Company, under the direction of Jorge Teixeira and Tadheo de Carvalho, where he performed in full length ballets such as, Don Quixote, Giselle, Swan Lake, La Bayadere, Raymonda, La Sylphide and The Nutcracker. As a member of the Brazilian Ballet Company, Mr. Ataide toured internationally to Israel, Colombia and China. In 2013 he joined the Montgomery Ballet, under the direction of Darren McIntyre, where he performed featured roles in The Nutcracker, Swan Lake, Spring Waters, Le Spectre de la Rose, Diana and Acteon, and The Phantom of the Opera. Mr. Ataide has appeared as a guest artist with The Albany Berkshire Ballet in New York, Charleston Ballet Theatre in South Carolina, Dance Canvas in Atlanta, Boca Ballet Theatre in Florida and Twin Cities Ballet in Minnesota. Now in his nineth season, Mr. Ataide has been featured in many City Ballet productions, including Basilio in Don Quixote, in George Balanchine’s Rubies, The Four Temperaments, Walpurgisnacht Ballet, Danses Concertantes, Don Jose in Carmen, the Cavalier in The Nutcracker, Albrecht in Giselle, the male lead in Le Corsaire Pas de Deux, La Bayadere and Paquita. He performed in On The Move and was also featured in the Company’s virtual productions Moving Forward, A Masquerade Nutcracker, Rhapsody in Blue and Raymonda during the 2020-21 Season.

Iago Breschi, a native of Brazil, began his studies at the Centro de Arte e Dança de Campo Grande in Rio de Janeiro where he studied for eight years under the direction of Luciene Bachur and Alice Arja. In 2011, he performed principal roles such as Puck in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the Prince in The Sleeping Beauty and Basil in Don Quixote as part of the Rio de Janeiro Ballet Company. In 2013, he improved his technique as a trainee of the Miami City Ballet where he danced several ballets by George Balanchine, such as Theme and Variations, Western Symphony, and Jewels. In 2016, Mr. Breschi danced with Atlanta Ballet, under the new direction of Gennadi Nedvigin, where he performed in George Balanchine’s Allegro Brillante, John McFall’s Nutcracker, David Bintley’s Carmina Burana, Helen Pickett’s Camino Real and Yuri Possokhov’s Firebird. Now in his sixth season with City Ballet of San Diego, Iago has performed the male lead role in Peter Martins’ Ash, Elizabeth Wistrich’s The Firebird, as the Nutcracker Prince and as the Caviler in The Nutcracker, Albrecht in Giselle, Prince Siegfried in Swan Lake, the male lead in Le Corsaire Pas de Deux, Paquita, Basilio in Don Quixote, George Balanchine’s Rubies, Who Cares?, Danses Concertantes and Apollo in Apollo. Iago performed in On The Move and the Company’s virtual productions Moving Forward, A Masquerade Nutcracker, Rhapsody in Blue and Raymonda during the 2020-21 Season.

James LaRose (Dance Manager, Dancer) – James joined Visionary Dance Theater in 2016 and trained with Spencer John Powell. In 2019, he performed Powell’s choreography for “Son of Cain” at the Soul Music & Performing Arts Academy for Holding Common Ground: Pathways to Cultural Exchange in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. James has also worked with Jeanne Travers, Kiona Daelyn, Emily Navarra, and Trixi Agiao. In 2019, he played Puck in Opera Neo’s production of The Fairy Queen. More recently, James was selected to participate in the Virtual LA Dance Festival and served as the artistic director for Powell’s Kidz Danz Kompany where he directed a sold-out production of Matilda Jr. As an actor, he gained praise for his 2022 lead performance in the award-winning short film, Cronch.  James currently holds the position of Dance Manager for Visionary Dance Theatre

DeVonté Murphy – DeVonté’s passion for dancing has led him to become a noteworthy performer in the San Diego dance community. His has had disciplined training in hip-hop, modern, contemporary, ballet, and jazz and showcases a variety of styles with performances.  At Grossmont Community College, DeVonté danced in concerts and trained under Colleen Shipkowski and Blythe Barton. He has performed with Jean Isaacs San Diego Dance Theater, Common Ground Theater, and Bite Dance Company. DeVonté became a professional company dancer with Visionary Dance Theatre in 2020.

Nick McGhee started dancing at 15 at Canyon Crest Academy in San Diego, CA. After attending Mira Costa College, he received his BFA in dance from Cal State Long Beach. While attending his undergrad, Nick had the opportunity to perform for several highly esteemed choreographers such as Keith Johnson, Kevin Williamson, and Micaela Taylor. Nick currently dances for the LITVAKdance company based in Encinitas, CA. Through LITVAKdance, he has had the privilege to work with Josh Manculich, Ronen Izhaki, Chuck Wilt, Rebecca Margolick, and Ido Gidron. He has also performed in the CDC fest in Orlando, FL, and in the Seattle International Dance Festival. Nick also works as a bartender at California Pizza Kitchen, he does graphic design and is currently studying to achieve his master's in psychotherapy.

Grand American Ballet Artistic Director and Founder

Remembrances of California Ballet Repertoire Director