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Winnipeg Free Press
17-05-2025
- Sport
- Winnipeg Free Press
Indigenous trainers rule the roost at Assiniboia Downs
Assiniboia Downs kicked off its 2025 live race meeting with a bang on Tuesday and Wednesday as fans bet more than a million dollars on two beautiful spring nights, and to nobody's surprise two talented Indigenous trainers, Tom Gardipy, Jr. and Steve Keplin, Jr., jumped out to an early lead in the trainer standings with three wins apiece. Indigenous trainers have won the training title at the Downs for 10 consecutive years, and 12 of the past 16. Gardipy, who hails from Beardy's Cree Nation in Saskatchewan, owns six of those titles (2009, 2010, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019). He has already solidified his status as one of the best trainers in the history of Assiniboia Downs, and when he gets hot, as he is right now, his horses become essential inclusions for handicappers. Gardipy won the fourth race Tuesday with Secret Glenda ($3.90) and the seventh race with longshot Brody's Streak ($24.30), who was ridden by current leading rider Rachaad Knights. He then won the sixth race Wednesday evening with Waitinbythenile ($8.70), who was also ridden by Knights. MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS Steve Keplin Jr., with his horse Exacting, is one of the top trainers at Assiniboia Downs. Going toe-to-toe at the top of the standings with Gardipy was lesser-known trainer Steve Keplin, Jr. from the Turtle Mountain Chippewa reserve in Belcourt, N.D., but his status is about to change. Keplin won the second race Tuesday with Best of Greeley ($2.90), and continued to win Wednesday, taking the fourth race with Gina's Serenade ($7.60) and the seventh race with Corredor ($12.60). The latter winner capped a lucrative $1 Pick 4 that paid $4,629.15 from a huge Pick 4 wagering pool of $92,528. Fans are once again flocking to the large betting pools at Assiniboia Downs, and they've been further enticed by a lowered takeout on all pools, which are now below 20 per cent across the board. Similarly, smart bettors have been playing Keplin's horses here for years. The 32-year-old trainer grew up with horses and has shown talent beyond his years since Day 1. He took out his trainer's license in 2013 and promptly won with his only starter. Since then, with small stables, he's compiled a record of 95-66-54 from 332 starts, winning at an amazing 29 per cent clip and finishing in the money 65 per cent of the time. And in 2017 and 2019 he won at an astonishing 40 per cent clip. Still, because he wasn't at the top of the standings, his horses often paid well at the windows. Keplin doubled the size of his stable this year from eight to 16, and he's now going to use his ample talents at the Downs on a full-time basis. In past years, he had travelled back and forth from North Dakota with his horses. He's ready to get more serious now, and Assiniboia Downs 'just feels like home,' said Keplin. Keplin got his early education with horses from his father and continued to learn by working for top trainers. 'My dad trained horses and I was always around the barns,' he said. 'We'd run our local bush meets and then come up here in the summer, shipping in and out.' His formal racing education came through working for respected trainers in the American Midwest, including Mike Biehler, David Van Winkle, and Mac Robertson, who have saddled the winners of almost US$80 million in purses. 'They're all Hall of Famers in Canterbury now,' said Keplin, who learned something different from all of them. Most importantly, he learned about preventative medicine and how to condition a horse physically and mentally to perform to the best of their ability. Keplin is a fan of ice, and not unlike today's elite athletes, his horses get it regularly to soothe their aches and pains. When asked about the different training styles of his mentors, he emphasized thoroughness and consistency. 'They train, they hire good grooms, and they work underneath their horses every day. That's the main thing. If you want to train your horses like professional athletes, you've got to be able to put the people underneath them to do the work every day.' Keplin's expansion represents a significant career move. 'I've been wanting to do it for the last few years, but I didn't think I was ready with my family at the time because my kids were really young.' Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. Now with his children aged six and seven, and after being with his partner Shelby for 11 years, Keplin felt the time was right to make the leap. But family remains central to his operation. 'I've got my brother James, who's my right-hand man,' said Keplin. 'My cousin Parker also works in the barn, along with a groom school student, Amber. She's starting to understand the system, always staying busy. There are four of us in the barn. We have a good crew.' Keplin's biggest win last year came in the Nephrite Overnight Stakes with Exacting, who is back in his barn again this year, but when asked about the highlight of his career, he pointed to another stakes winner that came from modest beginnings. 'The highlight for me was when we won the Free Press Stakes in 2019 with Louden's Gray,' said Keplin. 'We purchased him privately for $4,000. He just had a big heart.' And an excellent trainer.
San Francisco Chronicle
05-05-2025
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Ballet's new season to spotlight Forsythe and Balanchine, bring back popular classics
San Francisco Ballet's Artistic Director Tamara Rojo expects that some of her decisions for her third year of programming will surprise recent audiences. After a 2025 season without any works by George Balanchine, the company plans to include an all-Balanchine program spotlighting the New York City Ballet founder. This will be followed by a triple bill of works by the groundbreaking American choreographer William Forsythe, who Rojo sees as further innovating Balanchine's choreographic style. 'Last season was more inspired by my legacy of work with British choreographers and also narrative ballets, and this season is a little bit more American in the works and the choreographers and the style of dancing,' Rojo told the Chronicle. 'We are an innovative and very eclectic and versatile group of artists, and I want to give the audience the most amazing experience every year and not ever become predictable.' The coming season will also bring meaningful milestones as 2026 marks the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra's 50th anniversary, and the 20th year of Martin West's leadership as music director. Perhaps Rojo's most striking change, however, comes in the form of a structural shakeup that breaks from the old hierarchy of corps, soloist and principal ranks for the dancers to introduce demi-soloist and first soloist ranks. But first, the programming. The Ballet has a history of dancing Balanchine stretching back to 1952, and with 'Balanchine: Father of American Ballet' (Feb. 10-15), the company continues that tradition. The bill will consist of three of his best-known works: 'Serenade' and the 'Diamonds' section of 'Jewels,' both set to Tchaikovsky; and 'Stars and Stripes,' a patriotic celebration set to orchestrations of John Phillips Sousa's famous marches. To Rojo, it made perfect sense to follow the program with works by all-Forsythe, whose choreography, she said, 'is the closest thing in terms of the structure of Balanchine's musical understanding in so many ways, and in the amazing ability to create a world without narrative.' An American who spent much of his career in Germany, Forsythe shook up the dance world with the sharp, postmodern movement of his breakthrough work titled 'in the middle, somewhat elevated' in 1987. San Francisco Ballet has danced Forsythe's work since commissioning his ballet 'New Sleep' that same year, but this will mark the company's first all-Forsythe bill (Feb. 17-March 8). The program will bring together his recent works inspired by the avant-garde pop music of British singer James Blake, presenting 'Prologue,' 'The Barre Project,' and 'Blake Works I,' which was a local hit when San Francisco Ballet danced it in 2022. The other four programs slated for the 2026 season include a world premiere story ballet, two classics from the 19th century and the return of ' Mere Mortals,' a ballet inspired by the moral challenges of artificial intelligence, which was first unveiled in 2023. Following the company's traditional one-night gala program on Jan. 21, the company's 93rd season will kick off with the previously announced world premiere of resident choreographer Yuri Possokhov's full-length 'Eugene Onegin,' a co-commission with the Joffrey Ballet set to a new score by frequent Possokhov collaborator Ilya Demutsky. 'Dancers love dancing his work, and he has a real talent for narrative,' said Rojo of Possokhov, a former principal dancer who began his choreography career at San Francisco Ballet, who Rojo describes as 'one of the most awarded choreographers of our time, respected worldwide.' Alexander Pushkin's classic Russian novel in verse, about a 19th century dandy who plays with two women's hearts and faces intense remorse, is already well-known in the dance world through John Cranko's famous ballet of the same name. But Possokhov, whose version of 'Anna Karenina' toured to the Bay Area with the Joffrey last year and was an audience hit, was passionate about pursuing his unique version of it. 'Yuri is a very emotional man, an artist through and through,' Rojo said. 'I felt that Yuri's passion for this story, the amount of years he had been thinking about it, clarity of his vision for it, means that really, I needed to trust him.' For the classics, Rojo is bringing back Marius Petipa's ' Don Quixote ' (March 19-29), staged by Possokhov and former artistic director Helgi Tomasson, a lively comic ballet that includes some of the canon's most most challenging dancing. It will be followed by the Romantic-era 'La Sylphide' (April 10-16), in the company's existing staging by Tomasson, which honors August Bournonville's light, bounding choreography and presents iconic ballet imagery in its corps of winged fairies. The season will then close April 23-May 3 with a reprise of 'Mere Mortals,' a popular commission from Rojo's first programmed season in 2023 with surreal choreography by Canadian Aszure Barton. Composer and electronic music innovator Sam Shepherd, also known as Floating Points, will return to join the orchestra in performing the work's startling score from the pit. In dancer news, Thamires Chuvas, Dylan Pierzina, Alexis Francisco Valdes and Adrian Zeisel, currently in the corps, will enter the new rank of demi-soloist. Katherine Barkman and Joshua Jack Price, currently soloists, will enter the new rank of first soloist. Rojo said the changed rank system gives 'the opportunity to recognize progression without putting a huge amount of pressure on the individual before they are ready for it.' She added that she was thrilled that the company could extend corps contracts to all six of last year's apprentices, who came up through the San Francisco Ballet School. At the top of the ranks, she has hired three new principal dancers. Francesco Gabriele Frola joins from English National Ballet, Patricio Reve joins from Queensland Ballet, and Madeline Woo previously danced with the Royal Swedish Ballet. The number of dancers will remain roughly steady with 76 company members and six apprentices. 'I'm genuinely in love with the artists in this company,' Rojo said of the roster. 'This past season has been so thrilling, because they've been able to explore so many different styles, many of them new to them. I think their progress has been outstanding in every rank.' The 2026 season will be preceded by the company's traditional 'Nutcracker' run (Dec. 5-28), and by touring engagements at Orange County's Segerstrom Arts Center and the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.
The Guardian
19-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
English National Ballet: The Forsythe Programme review
It's no coincidence that so many of a new generation of choreographers have danced for William Forsythe, the most influential dance-maker since George Balanchine. It's not just that he encourages thought and creativity, enabling people such as Crystal Pite, Emily Molnar and Jill Johnson to emerge as significant forces in their own right. It's also that he makes dancers look so powerful, majestic, in control of time and space and their own destinies. English National Ballet's The Forsythe Programme, which has been filling Sadler's Wells with adoring audiences this past week, is a case in point. In three contrasting works, the sense of dance prowess realised springs from the questing character of Forsythe himself. Never a man to rest on his laurels, in his mid-70s he's still refining and rethinking dance. He seems constantly to ask himself what something is, turning it like a diamond to see how the facets will refract the light. Rearray (London Edition 2025), originally made as a duet in 2011 for Sylvie Guillem and Nicolas Le Riche, has been refashioned as a trio, with one central ballerina (now on pointe) and two male consorts. In a series of short scenes separated by sudden blackouts, sometimes to David Morrow's dark-hued score, sometimes in silence, the dancers shape the air in fiercely defined symmetries. In her central role, Sangeun Lee's long legs flick into casual attitudes, her arms outstretched into impossible geometry. Halfway through a movement, she seems to hesitate, question where to go next. In the dark, positions shift, often surprisingly. The men (Henry Dowden, Rentaro Nakaaki) are watchful, in her thrall. They fling off sprightly jumps, super-fast turns; sit on stage, arms interlinked like medieval jesters. The piece is full of quotations from works of the past, struck almost casually before the dancers move on. In the next cast, Emily Suzuki brings a gentler flow to the dynamics of the movement, less haughty than Lee but still very much a queen to the attendant men (Jose María Lorca Menchón and Miguel Angel Maidana). The pensive mood is in marked contrast to the muscular vitality of Herman Schmerman (Quintet), for two men and three women to music by Thom Willems, reconceived with a bright blue background (lighting design Tanja Rühl) and orange plush velvet leotards. Created for New York City Ballet in 1992, its title taken from Steve Martin's noir parody Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid, it's an abstract piece of circus vitality that sets its participants off in cheekily insouciant showoff turns. The energy is electric as, on opening night, Aitor Arrieta, Alice Bellini, Ivana Bueno, Francesco Gabriele Frola and Swanice Luong stroll on to fling themselves into off-kilter pirouettes and eye-popping entrechats, feet and limbs moving at pace. At the end, they all fall down – a tribute to the final moment of Balanchine's Serenade, perhaps, but also a reflection of just how exhausting the combinations they throw off are. The delicious contrast between the formality of the patterns created and the relaxed bravura of the dancers is amped to the max in the final work, Playlist (EP) from 2022, in which dazzling feats of balletic virtuosity are set to a score by artists including Peven Everett, Lion Babe and Barry White. It begins with ENB's impressive cohort of men performing athletic (and often rarely used) ballet combinations like battling club dancers, raising the roof with the sheer elevation of their jumps and the sharpness of their turns. Then the women enter like a brilliant chorus line. The intricate shifts of their movements, alone and in constantly changing configurations, release a sense of infectious pleasure. Yet amid the delirium there's subtlety too: a duet for Junor Souza and Precious Adams to Natalie Cole's This Will Be (An Everlasting Love) is full of feeling as well as panache. The entire evening feels like an assertion of ballet's ability to wrap its past and future into one joyful package. Forsythe's works are a jewel in ENB's crown, and the company makes them gleam. The Forsythe Programme is at Sadler's Wells, London, until 19 April
South China Morning Post
16-04-2025
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Jamie Richards scores Happy Valley double amid ‘tough old struggle' this season
Trainer Jamie Richards and jockey Zac Purton debrief after combining to win with Sunday's Serenade at Happy Valley. Photos: Kenneth Chan Iconical and Sunday's Serenade lift Kiwi handler's spirits at city circuit as he battles for winners this term Battling what he admits has been a 'tough old struggle' this season, a relieved Jamie Richards celebrated his first double in almost 12 months at Happy Valley on Wednesday night. Languishing near the bottom of the trainers' championship this term, the Kiwi handler is hopeful his campaign will take a turn for the better after combining with champion jockey Zac Purton to win with Iconical and Sunday's Serenade. 'It's my first one of the year, I think,' said Richards, who moved to 15 wins after his first brace since May last year. 'It's been a pretty tough old struggle to be honest, but hopefully we can get things going again. It's not the sort of place you want to have a lean spell in, but we're working hard, made a few little changes and hopefully we can be strong towards the end of the season.' Sunday's Serenade swamps them all! @JamieRichards3 and @zpurton team up for a double at Happy Valley in the Ewo Challenge Trophy... 🏆#HappyWednesday | #HKracing — HKJC Racing (@HKJC_Racing) April 16, 2025 Iconical broke through at start seven when astutely rated in front by Purton in the first section of the Class Four Thistle Handicap (1,650m). Sent out a $10 chance with a Happy Valley fourth his best previous result, the Needs Further four-year-old was never headed when he accounted for Owners' Praise by a length and a half. 'He's one of those horses that always trials well but hasn't fronted up race day yet,' Richards said. 'Usually when that happens, it's just a matter of taking a few races to work it out. He got a lovely ride tonight from Zac, controlled it off the front and ran well.' Sunday's Serenade helped clinch Richards' double when he made it two wins in a row with a barnstorming display in the Class Four The EWO Challenge Trophy (1,650m). Relishing a strong speed set by Mighty Commander, Sunday's Serenade swooped from near last to salute as the $3.6 second favourite. 'He's done a good job his last couple of starts,' Richards said after the Ardrossan gelding beat Dragon Star by half a length. 'He was aided by a beautiful ride by Brenton [Avdulla] a month ago and then tonight the pace was on, which suited him to get over the top of them. '[Sunday's Serenade and Iconical are] only young horses, so let's hope there's more in store.' Purton, who lifted his seasonal tally to 92 wins, was impressed by Sunday's Serenade. 'I got a little bit further back than I thought I would be and, as it turned out, the pace was strong and it suited him and he came with a strong run,' Purton said. 'He's another one who's turned the corner. It's taken him a few runs, but he's going the right way now.' Elsewhere on the Valley card, Andrea Atzeni continued his red-hot form with a treble aboard Ricky Yiu Poon-fai's Giant Leap, Mark Newnham-trained Crimson Flash and John Size's A Americ Te Specso. 'It's good going, we hit the ground running but I've had good support,' said Atzeni, who has ridden 17 winners since March 12. 'It's always nice to come racing with good chances and because I can ride light, it makes my job a little bit easier especially with horses like Crimson Flash, who was up in class with a light weight [118 pounds].' Newnham chimed in with a brace after Fatal Blow also won the first section of the Class Four Dianthus Handicap (1,200m) under Luke Ferraris. Meanwhile, 10 overseas jockeys have been granted permission by the Jockey Club to ride at the FWD Champions Day meeting on Sunday week. James McDonald (Prognosis, Voyage Bubble and Lucky Sweynesse), Joao Moreira (Chancheng Glory and Satono Reve), Yuga Kawada (Liberty Island and Gaia Force), Christophe Soumillon (Goliath), Tom Marquand (Lake Forest), Craig Williams (Mr Brightside, Cap Ferrat and A Shin Fencer), Damian Lane (Tastiera and Danon McKinley), Tim Clark (Royal Patronage), Atsuya Nishimura (Lugal) and Adrie de Vries (Calif) will be in action at the showpiece meeting.
CBS News
11-04-2025
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Colorado Ballet performs rarely seen Masterworks
The spring performance at Colorado Ballet is picked by the repertory. This year, the company has the rights to perform three rarely performed ballets. "They're some of the greatest ballets," said Alexandra Wilson, soloist with Colorado Ballet. The performance includes George Balanchine's Serenade , Jirí Kylián's Petite Mort , and Twyla Tharp's In the Upper Room . "They're protected by trusts, so we're super fortunate to be able to get the rights to do these kinds of ballets and some people will never have the opportunity to," Wilson explained. Serenade was choreographed in 1880 specifically for American audiences who had not been widely exposed to ballet before. It is a very traditional, classic ballet with increasing levels of difficult technique. "It challenges us to really grow our artistry," Wilson said. Petite Mort premiered in 1991 and is much more contemporary. "In Petite Mort , I'm one of six couples. My partner and I perform the six pas de deux," Wilson said. Serenade is ethereal with it's soft lighting and blue tutus. In the Upper Room is a sharp contrast. "What's really special about that ballet is that it starts with dancers in sneakers, and then there's a group of dancers that are called 'the Ballet People,' and they're in typical pointe shoes and stuff. I get to do both," Wilson said of In the Upper Room . The differences between the three ballets allows the dancers to explore and expand their skills. Not only is it a great honor for the dancers to perform these ballets, it's an unexpected treat for Denver audiences. They highlight the depth and diversity of Colorado Ballet. LINK: For Tickets & Information about Colorado Ballet's Masterworks Colorado Ballet's Masterworks runs from April 11 to April 20, 2025 at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House.
