THE NUTCRACKER

Patricia Barker was born in Richland, Washington, USA, where she received her early ballet training. She later studied on scholarship at Boston Ballet School and Pacific Northwest Ballet School. At age 17, she joined Pacific Northwest Ballet, under the directorship of Kent Stowell and Francia Russell, and quickly rose to the rank of Principal Dancer. Barker became Artistic Director of Grand Rapids Ballet and Director of the Grand Rapids Ballet School in 2010. She curated a compelling and dynamic repertoire ranging from full length classical ballets such as Petipa’s Swan Lake and Sleeping Beauty, to neo-classical masterworks including Balanchine’s Serenade and Four Temperaments, Tharp’s Nine Sinatra Songs and Taylor’s Company B. Barker was appointed as the Royal New Zealand Ballet’s Artistic Director in June 2017.

Shawn Boyle is a projection and lighting designer with experience in theater, musical theater, opera, dance, installation, and architectural projects. He has designed for the Berkshire Theatre Group, Yale Repertory Theatre, Cork Opera House (Ireland), Grand Rapids Ballet, Merry Go Round Playhouse, Ogunquit Playouse, Goodspeed Opera House, The Lyric Stage Company of Boston, as well as several other theaters and theme parks across the United States. Shawn has worked as an Associate Projection Designer for Elaine J. McCarthy. As Elaine’s associate, Shawn has mounted productions of Wicked in the United States, Australia, Japan, Germany, Holland, and the United Kingdom. Shawn also had the pleasure of serving as the Associate Projection Designer on three Broadway Shows: Thurgood, Impressionism, and The People in the Picture. Shawn has exhibited installation work at Yale Art Gallery and created mapped architectural pieces for display on Yale’s Beinecke Library. Shawn was recently recognized by the Connecticut Critics Circle for his projection design of the world premiere of Sheila Callaghan’s Elevada. Shawn is a member of United Scenic Artists, I.A.T.S.E local 829, as a Projection Designer and Lighting Designer. Lecturer in Design (Projection) – The Yale School of Drama.