Ballet Program | Artist Faculty
June 17-24
Ayşem Sunal Savaşkurt is an internationally renowned Principal Ballerina. Savaskurt was appointed Artistic Director of Istanbul State Opera and Ballet in 2015. Her interpretation in Cinderella and Swanilda has been praised by dance critics and international press, including Gilberte Cournand, Clement Crisp, and Anna Kisselgoff. Savaskurt’s success as Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty with Royal Ballet of Flanders was so well-reviewed that she became the highlight of the production at the Grand Opera House, Belfast. In 2005, Savaskurt worked with Anna-Marie Holmes in her staging of La Bayadère as Nikiya. Savaskurt represented Turkey as a jury member for the 2016 Varna International Ballet Competition.