Ballerina Stella Abrera and stars of the American Ballet Theater perform at BGC this week

THE Ayala Foundation, the STEPS Scholarship Foundation, and internationally acclaimed Filipino-American prima ballerina Stella Abrera join forces again for another series of magical classical ballet performances to raise funds for CENTEX, Ayala Foundation’s flagship education program.

This year, Ms. Abrera will perform alongside fellow American Ballet Theater (ABT) Principal Dancer James Whiteside and the ABT Studio Company under the direction of Sascha Radetsky in the show Stella Abrera & Rising Stars of American Ballet Theatre Featuring James Whiteside, Principal Dancer, American Ballet Theater at the Maybank Performance Arts Theater in Bonifacio Global City on Nov. 7 and 8.

Since Mr. Radetsky, Ms. Abrera’s husband, became Artistic Director of the ABT Studio Company, she has grown more aware and proud of the important work the company does.

“I see a parallel in the missions of CENTEX and ABT: both organizations offer a sanctuary where young people can be nurtured by passionate mentors to go on to bright futures,” Ms. Abrera is quoted as saying in a press release. “These lucky dancers spend one or two years, not only honing their technical skills, they also have a safe place for artistic exploration — reaching for the ultimate goal of finding employment with either ABT or other notable ballet companies.”

Joining Abrera and Whiteside are six newly appointed ABT apprentices: Leah Baylin, Kanon Kimura, Melvin Lawovi, Joseph Markey, Duncan Mcllwaine, and Chloe Misseldine who have just graduated from ABT. Also performing are ABT Studio Company dancers Tristan Brosnan, Teresa D’Otorne, Cy Doherty, Glatz Tillie, Seon Mee Park, Gabriel Rajah, Andrew Robare, Yoon Jung Seo, Shino Tsurutani, Aleisha Walker, and Filipino dancer and former CENTEX Tondo Scholar Elwince Magbitang.

Tickets to the shows are available on TicketWorld. For more information, visit ayalafoundation.org or ticketworld.com.ph.