Star Spangled Salute to Ariana Lallone and Jeff Stanton

Ariana & Jeff arrive!

What a beautiful evening on the tip of Yarrow Point to celebrate the dance careers of PNB Principal Dancers, Ariana Lallone and Jeff Stanton!  Jeff and Ariana arrived at the party via yacht and were greeted on shore with giant sparklers by around 100 friends, admirers, dancers and dance aficianados.

Event co-chairs, Sharon Richardson and Amy Anderson and the STARS group assisted by Liza Turner and rest of the stalwart PNB staff, produced a magical evening to honor Ariana's 24 year career with PNB and Jeff's 23 year dance career, with the last 17 years at PNB.

Cathi & Ariana

Ariana and Jeff have both been such audience favorites over the years and it is hard to imagine the PNB stage without either one of them on it.  I think of Ariana, with her grace and beautiful long arms and legs that extend forever and Jeff, dancing with his classical, clean lines and his perfect sense of theatre and comic timing.  There are dozens of favorite memories in my mind of each of them, but a couple of my personal favorites are remembering Ariana in Lambarena and Jeff tapping dancing in Silver Lining.

PNB Chairman of the Board, Aya Hamilton, shared a tribute to Ariana and I, as a past Chairman of the Board, was asked to give the tribute to Jeff which I was so pleased to do.  Here is my tribute to Jeff:

Cathi & Jeff

"Jeff Stanton began his professional dance career in 1988, exactly the same year I began my “dance career” as a PNB Board member. He has been a professional ballet dancer for 23 years now, the last 17 with PNB. Jeff, at 17 years with PNB, is the male dancer who has danced with PNB longer than any other dancer. The runner up is Benjamin Houk who danced for PNB for 13 years. In my mind’s eye, I can see Jeff dancing in so many roles, and usually he is the handsome prince who is dancing with the beautiful princess.

Reitred PNB Dancer, Lisa Apple, honors her former partner

Jeff started dancing when he was only 5 years old and began with tap and jazz. It was amusing to hear that at the ripe age of five, he decided that he didn’t like ballet and thought it was boring. Of course, we are all really glad that he changed his mind since he has made a career out of ballet.

I asked Jeff to share some of the funny memories he has from his dance career. One of stories he shared with me was a time that he and Patricia Barker were dancing the pas de deux in the Snow Scene in The Nutcracker and he had not shaved that day so had a fine stubble on his face. There are many lifts in this particular pas de deux, and Patricia’s beautiful long hair was hanging down her back. Each time Jeff would bring her down from a lift, her hair would catch on his stubble so that for much of the pas de deux, he appeared to have a very long blonde beard.

Ariana at her celebration

When I asked Jeff if there was a role that he didn’t get to dance that he wished he could have, he first answered that he got to dance all of the roles he hoped to dance and more. But when pressed, he said that a role he would have loved to dance, which ABT and San Francisco did regularly, is the Aaron Copland cowboy tap solo in Agnes de Mille’s “Rodeo”.

That reminded me that I have seen Jeff in a secret cowboy role that many of you may not have seen. A few years ago, Jeff and I were at the same Hoe-Down style party where there was a mechanical bull. Though I know dancers are expected not to snow ski and participate in dangerous sports activities to prevent injury, I don’t think anyone had specifically said that mechanical bull riding was off limits. Jeff was one of the most graceful riders that stayed on the bull for one of the longest times of anyone, though he finally fell off too. I decided that I would not share that story with anyone at the ballet just in case he might get in trouble . . . so Jeff~ I have kept your secret for several years now!

Jeff being toasted

As Jeff moves on to new life adventures with his first being a five week opportunity to dance a new work being commissioned from an Italian choreographer from La Scala in the Shanghai Opera House; I know that each of you join with me in wishing Jeff the best that life has to offer while we each hold our happy individual memories of him dancing at PNB. To Jeff! Cheers!"