Texas Ballet Theater Adds Former Houston Ballet Dancers to School Staff

Texas Ballet Theater has announced the appointment of Elise and Rhodes Elliott, retired Houston Ballet dancers, to faculty and staff positions within Texas Ballet Theater School.

Elise Elliott will join TBT as School Business Manager and Rhodes Elliott will be the new Advanced and Professional Training Division Instructor.

"I am thrilled to welcome Elise and Rhodes to our family," TBT Artistic Director Ben Stevenson, O.B.E. said. "They are not only great dancers, but wonderful actors as well. It is so beneficial for our students to learn from professional dancers who can share their experience, as there is so much more to ballet than just technique."

Originally from Sacramento, California, Elise Elliott danced with Houston Ballet for more than 10 years and retired as a Soloist in 2017. She danced in many works by distinguished choreographers including Stanton Welch, Anthony Tudor, Ben Stevenson, O.B.E., Jiri Kylian, George Balanchine, William Forsythe, Christopher Bruce, Sir Kenneth MacMillan, Twyla Tharp, Wayne MacGregor and John Cranko.

Elise Elliott most recently served as Ballet Director at Texas Academy of Dance Arts (TADA) in The Woodlands, where she grew TADA's ballet department and created its Youth Ballet Company. The Company performs community-based, mixed repertoire and full-length productions throughout the Houston area.

"I have always admired the Texas Ballet Theater family," she said. "I feel incredibly lucky to get to start this next chapter of my career as the School Business Manager. I'm looking forward to working with young dancers through my time in the studio as an instructor, as well as helping to grow both locations of the schools, administratively, during a time when the arts are needed the most."

Rhodes Elliott is originally from Florence, South Carolina, and danced with Houston Ballet, where he rose to the rank of Demi-Soloist. During his time at Houston Ballet he enjoyed performing works by Mark Morris, David Bintley, Christopher Wheeldon, Jerome Robbins and Sir Frederick Ashton, among others. He retired in 2018 after 11 seasons with the company.

He also danced in works by Andy and Dionne Noble with their company, NobleMotion Dance. After retiring from Houston Ballet, Rhodes Elliott joined TADA as Assistant Ballet Director.

"TBT is a company on the rise with a long tradition of excellence, with a school that has produced countless incredible dancers," he said. "I most look forward to being part of the TBT family and contributing to their continued success."

Both will begin their new positions at TBT in June 2021. For more information about Texas Ballet Theater School, visit https://texasballettheater.org/tbt-school/.

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