DANCING FOR LUDMILA: SAINT LOUIS BALLET DEDICATES 1998 'NUTCRACKER' TO LATE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

When the Saint Louis Ballet performed "The Nutcracker" at the Show Me Center in 1994, Artistic Director Ludmila Dokoudovsky lent great humor to the evening in the role of the grandmother. Her charm, talent and tirelessness served the ballet well for more than a quarter century.

The Saint Louis Ballet's 1998 production of "The Nutcracker" is dedicated to Dokoudovsky, who died Oct. 10 after a brief illness. She was 50.

The ballet company will perform "The Nutcracker" at the Show Me Center at 7:30 p.m. Friday.

Dokoudovsky's death was a sudden blow, said Debi Bublis, her administrative assistant. "It was very devastating. We were all very close to Ludmila."

The company had to begin rehearsals for "The Nutcracker" just a week after Dokoudovsky's death.

"Everybody -- the company, the board, the school and parents -- has rallied together to make this "Nutcracker" tour a success," Bublis said. "This has been very emotional for a lot of us."

Zalewski and Dokoudovsky had run the company as a team since founding it in 1972, originally as the Missouri Concert Ballet.

"Tony has taken over," Bublis said. "... We all have taken extra roles to fill the void. She had big shoes."

Doloudovsky came from a dance family. Her father was a ballet instructor in New York, and her Danish-born mother helped found the American Ballet Theater. Dokoudovsky studied at the Ballet Arts Carnegie Hall, the School of Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo and the ABT School.

She and Zalewski are credited with augmenting the regional company with international dancers who are alumni of the Kirov and Bolshoi ballets. Their outreach programs have brought ballet to thousands of people who otherwise never would have the opportunity to see the art form in person.

The 1998 version of Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracker" will be performed with new costumes and sets purchased from the Milwaukee Ballet. They were designed by Tony winner Oliver Smith.

The cast includes about 45 dancers, including children. Joining the company's principal dancers, Octavio Nieta and Toma Jai Ananda, this year are two new principals, Sylvia Poolos and Maxim Tchernyshev.

Friday will be the company's third performance of "The Nutcracker" this year after opening their tour with two shows Nov. 21 in St. Joseph. In all, the tour will take the company to 11 cities in four states and will consist of 21 performances.