Ventana Ballet & Red Nightfall Productions present the 6th anniversary production of:

The Watchmaker's Song
An immersive reimagination of The Nutcracker

Dorothy O’Shea Overbey
Director of Red Nightfall Dance Theatre
Artistic Director & Choreographer of The Watchmaker’s Song
Appearing as The Snow Queen

AJ Garcia-Rameau
Director of Ventana Ballet
Executive Director & Producer of The Watchmaker’s Song
Appearing as The Sugar Plum Fairy

Neill-Cochran House Museum

AUSTIN, TX

Neill-Cochran House Museum

December 7-9 + 14-16 - Evening* Shows
December 10 - Interactive Kids Matinee Shows - 12pm Doors & 2pm Doors

*Weekend 1 Evening Times:
Thu. Dec7 @7:30pm (Doors & VIP Reception begin at 7pm)
Fri. Dec8 @7:30pm (Doors & VIP Reception begin at 7pm)
Sat. Dec9 @6:30pm (Doors & VIP Reception begin at 6pm)
Sat. Dec9 @8:30pm (Doors & VIP Reception begin at 8pm)

*Weekend 2 Evening Times:
Thu. Dec14 @7:30pm (Doors & VIP Reception begin at 7pm)
Fri. Dec15 @6:30pm (Doors & VIP Reception begin at 6pm)
Fri. Dec15 @8:30pm (Doors & VIP Reception begin at 8pm)
Sat. Dec16 @6:30pm (Doors & VIP Reception begin at 6pm)
Sat. Dec16 @8:30pm (Doors & VIP Reception begin at 8pm)

** VIP guests are invited to join a special holiday reception with the artists before the show begins. VIP guests also receive Front Row Seating to the Finale. **

** All tickets include admission to the immersive performance as well as drinks. Proceeds support artist payment and future immersive productions! **

A Letter from the Directors…

Dearest Distinguished Guests,

Season’s Greetings! We are so excited to present to you this evening The Watchmaker's Song, our annual immersive twist on the classic story of The Nutcracker.

In its sixth annual presentation at the Neill-Cochran House, The Watchmaker's Song features a jazzy and exciting score of music, written by Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn. This upbeat rearrangement of Tchaikovsky's original Nutcracker score sets the stage for Act 1 of our performance, which takes place on the front lawn of the House, sharing the story of Clara and her Party Dancer friends, Dame Mouserink, Princess Pirlipat, the Nutcracker, and of course, the Watchmaker himself.

Just after the grand appearance of the Snow Queen, the Watchmaker invites our guests into the House for Act 2 of The Watchmaker's Song, where guests may tour the various rooms, each of which feature a guest performer from various cultural dance traditions. This year, The Watchmaker's Song features Argentinian Tango, Spanish Flamenco, American Tap Dance, Egyptian Bellydance, Indian Bharatanatyam, and Traditional Chinese Dance. We are so proud to bring cultural inclusivity to the forefront of The Watchmaker's Song, highlighting the diversity of our local dance scene. In the back room, we invite all the guests to join us for a grand finale, where they meet Mother Ginger and the Dolls, and the Sugar Plum Fairy.

It is the shared mission of Ventana Ballet and Red Nightfall Dance Theatre, the two co-presenters of The Watchmaker's Song, to provide performance opportunities to local professional performing artists, to highlight less heard artistic voices, to create more accessible options for guests to experience performance art, and to present art in a way that is immersive and unique. As always, we are truly grateful to our partners at the Neill-Cochran House Museum for hosting this special ballet year after year.

With love & gratitude,

AJ Garcia-Rameau
Executive Director & Producer of The Watchmaker’s Song
Appearing as The Sugar Plum Fairy
Director of Ventana Ballet

Dorothy O’Shea Overbey
Artistic Director, Writer, & Choreographer of The Watchmaker’s Song
Appearing as The Snow Queen
Director of Red Nightfall Dance Theatre

About the Show…

The Watchmaker’s Song is a whimsical version of the Nutcracker holiday favorite that engages the audience in both the traditional components of the Nutcracker Ballet and also some elements of the original story by E.T.A. Hoffman.

Upon entering the cozy, festoon-lit courtyard of the Neill-Cochran House Museum, guests can grab a seasonal cocktail and immerse themselves in this enchanted holiday tale. A mysterious character, The Watchmaker himself, emerges from the crowd and invites the attendees to follow him down the brick-laden path surrounding the shaded oak property of the 19th century home.

Just around the corner from the courtyard, the party dancers invite the guests to join in a holiday swing-dancing party set to Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn’s jazz rendition of the original Tchaikovsky Nutcracker music. Guests can enjoy a holiday party and pop-up performances on the front lawn, meeting some charming characters, who then invite the party-goers to experience more of the magic inside the historical house.

Indoors, each room of the house features live installations of cultural music and dance. “Indoors is where the audience discovers a world of dance. Instead of The Nutcracker's dances inspired by different cultures, here are actual dances from different cultures, performed by local residents who really know them,” wrote Robert Faires in the 2019 Chronicle review. “The setup allows the audience to make intimate connections with these cultural dances and their dancers—something one couldn't do with a traditional Nutcracker.”

The event culminates with a special finale of ethereal characters in the grand room before the audience exits the House, returning to the real world. Faires wrote, “Granted, it's a long way from battling evil mice under the Christmas tree and taking a magic sleigh to the Land of Snow, but threaded throughout all this updated fun—and it is fun—are nods to the original ballet.”

Watch last year’s trailer here:

Casting

Meet the Directors

AJ Garcia-Rameau

AJ Garcia-Rameau (Sugar Plum Fairy, Director of Ventana Ballet) is the Executive Director and Producer of The Watchmaker’s Song.

AJ Garcia-Rameau is a professional dancer, director of Ventana Ballet, partner of First Street Studio, and semiconductor engineer in Austin, Texas. AJ is the founder and director of Ventana Ballet, a professional contemporary ballet dance company based in Austin, TX whose mission is to bring more performance opportunities to local artists and to provide accessible performance opportunities to the community. AJ is also a partner owner of First Street Studio, an accessible performance, rehearsal, and education venue that is home to more than 75 Austin-based performing arts companies and individual professional artists. AJ’s formal training is in classical and contemporary ballet and modern dance. AJ was born in Houston, TX where she received her training at the Houston Academy of Dance and performed with the Exclamation Dance Company. AJ earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering and Minor in Dance from the University of Texas while training at the Austin School of Classical Ballet and performing as a company member of BHumn Dance Company and the Austin Classical Ballet. AJDances.com

Dorothy O’Shea Overbey

Dorothy O’Shea Overbey (Snow Queen, Director of Red Nightfall Dance Theatre) is the Artistic Director, Writer, and Choreographer of *The Watchmaker’s Song.*

Born in Alaska and raised in Austin, Dorothy grew up training at Ballet Austin and studying classical piano with UT Professor Emeritus Amanda Vick Lethco. After earning a BFA in Dance Performance and a BA in Philosophy from Southern Methodist University, Dorothy performed with Colorado Ballet, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, David Taylor Dance Theatre, Fugate/Bahiri Ballet New York, Dances Patrelle, and many independent choreographers in New York City. While in New York, Dorothy did introductory training at the Atlantic Theatre School, and appeared in commercials, indie films, and Darren Aronofsky’s film Black Swan.
Upon returning to Austin, Dorothy joined the faculty of the Department of Theatre and Dance at UT Austin. In 2013 she co-founded Austin Community Ballet, an organization of dancers in the Austin area that offers professional-level ballet classes in an open, collaborative, non-hierarchical environment. Dorothy is also a partner/owner of First Street Studio, an affordable and accessible rehearsal and performance venue for Austin performing artists.
Red Nightfall Dance Theatre was founded in 2017 to create immersive experiences through film and dance/theater performance. Red Nightfall’s mission is to forge new mythologies that resonate with contemporary audiences and to amplify the voices of underrepresented artists whose work defies conventional categorization. The creation of beauty is not the privilege of the pedigreed, but a birthright to us all.

Meet the Artists

**Lillie Amdahl**

Internationally trained in ballet, modern, and contemporary, Lillie has started freelancing in Austin this year. She would miss sleep for a bowl of pasta and when not training she can be found country dancing.

Julia Beros

Julia Beros rides her silver bicycle with a red milk crate all around town, and she dances whenever there’s a chance. Originally from the East Coast, Julia now enjoys exploring Austin’s wonderful dance scene and works for the City’s Parks and Recreation, neat!

Movin’ Melvin Brown

Movin' Melvin Brown: Cincinnati-born R&B & Tap legend, known for singing, tap dancing, and storytelling. From early stardom to sharing stages with icons like James Brown, he's a versatile entertainer and TV personality. Founder of "The Change This World Project," he passionately supports the vulnerable globally. A globetrotter gracing stages from the Sydney Opera House to Oprah's event for Maya Angelou. Melvin's career includes eight musicals and over three books, alongside fifteen CDs. LA Radios' 'Best Blues Artist' and advocate for the homeless, elderly, and children. Health, fitness, and motivational performer embodying the philosophy: "When we find self-love, we believe in life's great possibilities." Web www.movinmelvin.com YouTube: www.youtube.com/MovinMelvinBrown

Rachel Cox Culver

Rachel Cox Culver is a dance artist based in Austin, TX who performs with Ventana Ballet, NobleMotion Dance, Sea Legs Dance, Ty Graynor, and Red Nightfall Dance Theatre. Culver hails from Elida, NM where she studied classical and contemporary ballet, spent her summers studying with the Kirov Academy of Ballet, among others, and obtained a BFA in Dance Performance from Sam Houston State University.

Mia Dedear

Mia Dedear is thrilled to join The Watchmaker's Song for the fourth time. She trained at The Love of China School of Chinese Dance under the instruction of her mother, Emily Dedear. Traditional Chinese dance has been a lifelong pursuit, and she's overjoyed to be sharing it again this holiday season.

Colleen DeForrest

Colleen DeForrest is an established drag queen here in the city of Austin. You can catch her all over the city hosting, performing and what she does best, BINGO!

Aidan DeWitt

Aidan is so excited to bring the Nutcracker to life! He would like to thank to Ventana Ballet and Red Nightfall Dance Theatre for giving Austin dancers the opportunity to create magic together🙏🏼

Esquina Tango

Esquina Tango is a non-profit organization that since 2007 has worked on building a vibrant, diverse and inclusive community in East Austin and beyond through dance, culture and music! Directors Monica and Gustavo are honored and proud to be part of this production of Ventana Ballet! Dedicated to bringing people together through culture, music, and dance! 25 years experience creating and producing events and 17 years directing Esquina Tango. Monica turned her passions into a career! She has been dancing tango for 32 years and holds a BA in Performance Arts.

**Elaine Fields**

Elaine Fields is a dance artist, yoga, and barre fitness instructor in Austin, TX. She started her professional career in Phoenix, AZ, with the Graham-based company, Center Dance Ensemble, for the late Frances Cohen and Diane McNeal Hunt before moving to Houston as a freelance artist, performing for Jenifer Mabus and Heather VonReichbauer, among others. Here in Austin, Fields has performed with Sea Legs Dance, Ventana Ballet for Kaleidoscope, and TY&CO’s premier work, ‘Americana’. She is beyond excited to join the amazing Watchmaker's cast in this beautiful production!

**Rachael Hanlon**

Rachael Hanlon is a freelance movement artist in Austin, Texas. She has collaborated in many contemporary dance works in her community over the years and is proud to be a founding artist with Ventana Ballet. A main source of artistic expression is as a dancer and choreographer in Austin based band, Golden Dawn Arkestra.

Caroline Jones

Caroline Jones is a dancer and non-profit professional based in Austin, TX. Caroline trained with the Mississippi Metropolitan Ballet and later with the Texas Christian University dance department while receiving her bachelor’s degree. Caroline lived and worked in Kolkata, India as a Fulbright Scholar and received her master’s in Public Affairs from the University of Texas. Caroline is thrilled to join this wonderful cast for The Watchmaker's Song!

Rania Kandil

Being Egyptian and on a quest to learn more about her heritage, Rania decided to try bellydancing classes in 2001. After her first class, she fell in love it and never stopped learning. Since then, she's performed all over Austin, travelled all over taking workshops, and then started teaching in 2017 at the The Austin Bellydance Studio.

Stephanie Keeton

Stephanie Keeton has been dancing professionally in Austin for the past 20 years. Before that she studied in Corpus Christi at Ballet Nacional where she learned Ballet, Jazz, Modern, Folklorico and Flamenco. When she came to Austin, she was Principal Dancer and choreographer in Aztlan Dance Company where she was voted Austin's Best Dancer several times. She then went on to dance with the only Flamenco dance company in Austin, A'lante Flamenco for the past 10 years. Now she has thrown herself into Bollywood and having the best time. Stephanie has been a part of the Watchmaker for the past 5 years and its been an amazing experience. Dance on!

**Josh Martinez**

Josh grew up in San Antonio, Texas where he found and fell in love with the art of ballet. After Attending UT Austin he has been incredibly excited to continue sharing his love of dance with Ventana Ballet.

**Ripley Mayfield**

Ripley Mayfield started dancing at the age of three and never stopped! She grew up in Dallas, moved to Maine to study at Bowdoin College, and now works full time as a software engineer here in Austin. This is her second time performing with Ventana Ballet and her first time experiencing the magic of The Watchmaker's Song.

**Mia Moi**

Mia Moi was born and raised in Houston, Texas, where she began her dance journey. She was a Corps member of BalletForte, under Michael Banigan and Dianne Jarrell, and Captain of the Dulles Dolls Dance Team under the direction of Angela Hayes. Since moving to Austin in 2017, she has collaborated with various dance collectives like Ventana Ballet, ARCOS, Articulate Austin, Early Era Collective, Dance Waterloo, and Tapestry. She currently teaches contemporary, jazz, modern, tap, and hip hop at Ballet Austin and ElectrikCity. Mia attended the University of Texas at Austin, where she directed Steel Dance Company and received a B.S. in Communication & Leadership and a B.A. in Psychology.

Kanami Nakabayashi

Kanami Nakabayashi, originally from Tokyo, Japan, started dance at the age of three and her passion for dance led her to train abroad in Canada and at UT Austin. She is now a freelance dancer in Austin dancing in productions by Ventana Ballet, Sea Legs Dance, Ty Granor and Early Era Dance Collective, and is happy to be part of an amazing Austin dance community!

Navaji David Nava

Navaji David Nava, an accomplished artist, dancer, choreographer, and educator, has been shaping his creative path since 2008. His early career saw him as a professional ballet dancer with the Sarasota Ballet Company. He trained with revered artists like Gilbert Mayer of the Paris Opera Ballet, Stanton Welch of the Houston Ballet, and Desmond Richardson of Complexions. Navaji also held roles as a soloist for the Dominic Walsh Contemporary Company and principal for the Sarasota Contemporary Company.

In 2021, Navaji earned an Art degree from the University of Texas at Austin and currently teaches arts at Highland Park Elementary in Austin ISD. His creative endeavors are deeply connected to his humanitarian work and personal spiritual development, with his art being profoundly influenced by his anthroposophical and esoteric studies.

His latest work, "KOMOREBI," is a testament to his multifaceted talent and ability as a producer, displaying his prowess in set-building, costume design, choreography, and coaching the VENTANA BALLET company members through his unique methodology, ATMA Moves.

Navaji's journey, transitioning from stage to canvas and healing spaces, embodies his resilience, creativity, and relentless pursuit of personal and spiritual growth. For more information about Navaji, his ATMA Moves classes, or future collaboration opportunities, please visit www.Navaji.com or email him at Navaji.info@gmail.com

Neha Raste

Neha Raste is a trained Bharatanatyam professional, practicing since 2005 under Dr Sucheta Bhide Chapekar and Yashoda Patankar. She has been performing Bollywood dance for the last 4 years and teaching for 2+ years with Agni Dance. She is also a Machine Learning Engineer by daytime profession.

Jane Schwartz

Jane has been a friend of Austin Community Ballet since its beginning in 2013. You can catch Jane singing with ATX Musical Theatre Collective at venues around Austin or on screen, in the feature film Inbetween Girl on Showtime.

Tikiri Shapiro

Tikiri Shapiro landed in Austin a few years ago and has been loving this city's dance scene ever since. While she can't get enough of Ventana Ballet, she also choreographs and performs with her own dance company, Sea Legs Dance (sealegsdance.com) and runs Austin's dance resource Instagram, @austindancehub.

**Arianna Sotero**

Arianna Sotero was born and raised in Dallas, TX where she graduated from Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and Dance Industry, performing works by Peter Chu, Benoit-Swan Pouffer, Matt Luck, and Lar Lubovitch, among many others. She then attended New York University and graduated with a B.F.A in Dance and B.A. in Psychology. Arianna is excited to be performing with Ventana Ballet again!

THANK YOU!

SPONSORS
Tito’s Handmade Vodka (Season Sponsor)

FISCAL SPONSOR
The Austin Creative Alliance
City of Austin Cultural Arts Division

IN-KIND BAR SPONSORS
Tito’s Handmade Vodka
Still Austin
Austin Eastciders
The Austin Wine Merchant

IN-KIND RAFFLE SPONSORS
Mantis Massage
Sour Duck
Movin’ Easy Dancewear
East Austin Succulents
Black Swan Yoga
Barre3
Castle Hill Fitness

IN-KIND PRODUCTION SPONSORS
Só Dança & Movin' Easy Dancewear (Shoe Sponsor)
First Street Studio (Rehearsal Venue)
Austin School of Classical Ballet (Marley Stage Flooring)
David Keeton Jr. & KH IT Services LLC (Flamenco Staging)
First Street Studio (Rehearsal Venue)
The Neill-Cochran House Museum (Performance Venue, Austin, TX)
The Ingenhuett on High (Performance Venue, Comfort, TX)
The French Cow (Cast Lodging, Comfort, TX)

DESIGN SPONSORS
Farid Zarrinabadi (Photography & Videography)
Jack (Photography)
Ty Graynor (Videography)
Madeleine Robb (Outdoor Lighting)

SPECIAL THANKS
Art Seen Alliance (Outdoor Stage)
Rock & Roll Rentals (Audio Equipment)
Affordable Sound & Printing (Prints)
Tribeza, KMFA, Austin Chronicle (Advertising)

SPECIAL SHOUT OUTS

THANKS TO OUR CREW & BARTENDERS!
Thank you for creating the space for us to focus on the art! Thank you Priscilla, Ish, Shelby, Jio, Mason, Kathryn, Jake, Justin, Erin, and Rachelle!

THANKS TO OUR REHEARSAL CAPTAINS!
Thank you to our dancers, Rachel Culver, Kanami Nakabayashi, and Navaji David Nava, for going above and beyond to lead many of the rehearsals!

THANK YOU TO OUR PROP DESIGNERS!
Special thank you to Aidan DeWitt, Jane Schwartz, Navaji David Nava, and Tikiri Shapiro for their crucial contributions in dramaturgy and prop-making.

About Ventana Ballet

Ventana Ballet is a professional dance company based in Austin, TX, specializing in contemporary ballet dance performance. The word ventana, meaning window, embodies the company’s organizational mission and vision, seeking to provide artistically relevant, technically proficient, and publicly accessible dance performance and education opportunities to the community. Ventana Ballet’s mission is to inspire, entertain and educate audiences through disciplined and innovative approaches to presenting next-generation choreographic works. More information about Ventana Ballet can be found on the company website at VentanaBallet.com.

About Red Nightfall Dance Theatre

Founded by Dorothy O’Shea Overbey in 2017, RNDT specializes in crafting immersive experiences through interdisciplinary dance/theater performance. Our mission is twofold: to forge new mythologies that resonate with contemporary audiences and to amplify the voices of underrepresented artists whose work defies conventional categorization.

Support

Ventana Ballet’s mission is to create fair-pay opportunities for performing artists and keep ticket prices as low as we can. In order to do that, we rely heavily upon the support of our community. If you’re able, please consider a donation. For credit card donations, please click the PayPal button below. Also, we accept Venmo!

Ventana Ballet is grateful to you and all of our supporters!