Manhattan Youth Ballet and MMAC Present THE KNICKERBOCKER SUITE, Now thru 12/16

Manhattan Youth Ballet and Manhattan Movement & Arts Center present The Knickerbocker Suite tonight, December 12 - Friday, December 14 at 7pm; Saturday, December 15 at 3pm & 7pm; and Sunday, December 16 at 3pm, at the Manhattan Movement & Arts Center, 248 West 60th Street, NYC (between Amsterdam and West End Avenues) in the Lincoln Center area). Tickets are $25 for adults and $20 for students. Tickets will be on sale as of Monday, November 5 by visiting http://www.manhattanyouthballet.org/performances.html, manhattanmovement.com/calendar or by calling 212-787-1178.

The Knickerbocker Suite, a new holiday classic, has been brought to the stage by Rose Caiola with the Manhattan Youth Ballet. Based on the jocular story by artist Elliott Arkin, this original ballet is a timely tale of American values and folklore with New York City at the center of attention. The first act, mixed media production, opens with a satirical animated film narrated by Tony award winning actor, Michael Cerveris, revealing a series of imaginative contemporary visual scenarios and characters following in the tradition of the Nutcracker story. In the second act, the Knickerbocker Suite weaves clever modern interpretations out of timeless scenes and dances in which the land of sweets becomes the cultural cornucopia that is NYC. The arts, sports, fine dining, parks and even the pigeons are magically and cleverly intertwined with the classic Tchaikovsky movements of Candy Canes, Coffee, Waltz of the flowers and more, culminating in a grand finale that is sure to bring joy and a great holiday spirit for audiences young an old. Choreographers include New York City Ballet's Daniel Ulbricht, Deborah Wingert (formerly of New York City Ballet), Nick Kepley (last seen on Broadway in Mary Poppins, currently working with choreographer Josh Prince), Marina Stavitskaya (seen in the feature film, BLACK SWAN) and Natalia Boesch (formerly of American Ballet Theatre).

Modeled with an emphasis on European classical ballet, Manhattan Youth Ballet (MYB) offers world-class training in a nurturing environment focused on discipline, precision and artistry. MYB is the culmination of Ms. Rose Caiola's effort for the past fifteen years to create a viable and curriculum-based ballet academy in Manhattan in order to serve the needs of the multifaceted community. Principal members of the faculty have received their training in schools such as the School of American Ballet, Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet and the Kirov Ballet. The faculty strives to bring out the individual potential of each student with an emphasis on artistry as well as technique to create truly versatile dancers for the current dance world. Education is a top priority at Manhattan Youth Ballet and the school has numerous community outreach programs to promote dance education. Since moving to its new home at Manhattan Movement & Arts Center in September 2008, over 2,500 New York City school children have participated in lecture demonstrations and/or been MYB's invited guests at full-length performances. For more information, visit www.manhattanyouthballet.org.

Manhattan Movement & Arts Center was developed by Rose Caiola as the home of the Manhattan Youth Ballet, a graded, pre-professional ballet academy and performance company. Ms. Caiola, a former dancer and actress, founded the academy in the fall of 1994 as Studio Maestro at 48 W. 68th Street, and today serves as the youth ballet's executive artistic director.

The school is modeled after the European academies. The Manhattan Youth Ballet has acquired a reputation for excellent teaching in an intimate and individually supportive environment. The school's graduates have danced professionally with American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, Nederlands Dans Theater, Ballet de España, San Francisco Ballet and Complexions.

As the ballet academy grew, the search for a larger space inspired in Ms. Caiola a highly personal vision of a studio and theater complex that would encompass all aspects of dance education and performance.

mmac opened its doors in June 2008, occupying a dramatic bi-level space within The Element, a luxury high-rise condominium. In addition to the Manhattan Youth Ballet, mmac's studios and theater host daily adult dance and fitness classes, the mmac Kids program, summer intensive programs, as well as an array of performances and special events.

For more information about mmac, visit www.manhattanmovement.com.