Historical Timeline RG article about the first performance of EBC with the Pacifica players 1978 Eugene Ballet founded with an opening performance of The Soldier’s Tale with the Pacific Players. 1979 Cinderella -first full length ballet performed at Sheldon high School Auditorium with guest artists Zina Bethune and Glenn White. 1982 September – Bluebird Pas de Deux – opening of the Hult Center 1982 September – Corsaire Pas de Deux – opening of the Hult Center 1982 September – Firebird – opening of the Hult Center 1987 First of three international tours to Taiwan performing in Taipei and seven other cities in Taiwan. 1988 Collaboration with Ballet Oregon presenting Giselle in Portland at the Civic Theater and Eugene at the Hult Center with guest artists Kimberley Glasco and Fernando Bujones. 1990 Premiere of Ken Kesey’s children’s story Little Tricker the Squirrel meets Big Double the Bear narrated by Ken Kesey. 1992 First performances of Swan Lake staged by Louis Godfrey and Denise Shults. 1992 Celebration of the Uncommon Woman performance – evening of all women choreographers and composers conducted by Marin Alsop. 1993 First performances of Carmina Burana with Eugene Concert Choir & Oregon Mozart Players. 1994 Beginning of 14-year alliance with Ballet Idaho joining resources of artistic leadership, dancers, technical staff and performance venues opening with Charles Bennett’s Dracula. 1995 Arts America international tour funded by the U.S, Information Agency to Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, Jordan, Syria and Tunisia through the U.S. Information Service (7/2-8/9, 1995) 1996 EBC receives the Governors Arts Awards for Excellence in the Arts. 1997 EBC tours Romeo & Juliet throughout British Columbia, Canada. 2001 Performances of full length ballet, Don Quixote staged by Anna Marie Holmes. 2006 Eugene Opera and EBC collaborative performance of Hansel & Gretel. 2006 Pink Martini performed on EBC program. 2008 EBC performs at White Bird Modern Dance Series event 4X4 Ballet Project with San Francisco Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and Oregon Ballet Theatre at Schnitzer Concert Hall in Portland, OR. 2010 First performances of Dark Side of the Moon with guest band the Floydian Slips 2012 Light Rain performance with choreography by Gerald Arpino 2013 First performances of Mowgli, The Jungle Book Ballet. A full-length ballet supported by Richard Haugland. 2017 The Snow Queen premiere with full length composition by composer Kenji Bunch performed live by Orchestra Next and supported by Richard Haugland. Riley Grannan Co-Founder, Managing Director Emeritus After a 38-year career with Eugene Ballet Company, Managing Director Riley Grannan retired in July of 2016. Grannan, after co-founding EBC in 1978 with Artistic Director Toni Pimble, performed many roles within the professional company including Dancer, co-Artistic Director, and for the last 25 years, Managing Director. A native of the Pacific Northwest, Mr. Grannan began his ballet career studying with Doreen Gilday in Eugene and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at the School of Performing Arts at United States International University in San Diego. Mr. Grannan’s professional career took him to Germany, performing with several ballet companies, touring throughout Europe, in leading roles in both classical and contemporary ballets by noted choreographers. In 1978, Mr. Grannan to co-founded the Eugene Ballet Company with Artistic Director Toni Pimble. Since becoming Managing Director in 1987, Mr. Grannan has facilitated the Eugene seasons as well as the domestic and international tours. As a performer with the Eugene Ballet Company, Mr. Grannan created several roles including Katschei in The Firebird, and the Step Sister in Cinderella, among others. In 1997, he and Toni Pimble were recipients of the Governor’s Arts Award for their work in developing performance and educational programs with the Eugene Ballet Company, the first received by a dance organization in Oregon. Under Mr. Grannan and Artistic Director Toni Pimble’s leadership, Eugene Ballet receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts. Also, the EBC was the first Oregon company to be chosen to take part in the NEA’s Advancement program and was the only ballet company in the nation to participate in the two-month-long, NEA-sponsored “Dance On Tour” programs taking place in rural communities in Arizona and New Mexico. Mr. Grannan helped to facilitate a three year composer in residence for the ballet through Meet The Composer “New Residencies” program. Mr. Grannan has served on three separate Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF) dance touring panels, the National Endowment for the Arts “Creation and Presentation” panel, as well as selection panels for Arts Northwest and the Individual Artist Fellowship and Theatre panels in Oregon and Idaho. Click here to see Eugene Ballet’s full performance history. Eugene Ballet Company The Midtown Arts Center 174 East 16th Avenue Eugene, OR, 97401 (541)485-3992 (541)687-5745 Eugene Ballet Academy (541)686-9342 Sara Lombardi, Director Quick Links Company Academy Performances Support Classes Blog Follow Us Twitter Facebook Instagram Newsletter Opt-in Email * By submitting this form, you are consenting to receive marketing emails from: Eugene Ballet, 174 E 16th Ave, Eugene, OR, 97401, http://www.eugeneballet.org. You can revoke your consent to receive emails at any time by using the SafeUnsubscribe® link, found at the bottom of every email. Emails are serviced by Constant Contact Copyright © 2021 Eugene Ballet Company. All rights reserved. Website developed by Partnered Solutions IT | Designed by Ruby Porter Marketing & Design