Roman Baca
Artistic Director - Veteran USMC
Education: Mr. Baca graduated from the Nutmeg Conservatory for the Arts post-graduate program where he was exposed to the choreography and movement vocabulary of many influential artists to include Kirk Peterson, Elena Tchernichova, Kevin Martin, Moses Pendelton, Eleanor D'Antuono, Alexei Tchernichov, among others. Mr. Baca majored in dance at the University of New Mexico, where he was honored to be a dancer in Anthony Tudor's Dark Elegies set by Donald Mahler. Mr. Tudors' choreographic genius and literal imagery has left a deep impression on his movement vocabulary and conceptual vision, contributing to his evolution as a choreographer.
Career: Roman started as a dancer for the Nutmeg Ballet and furthered his performing career with the New Mexico Ballet Company. Under the artistic direction of David Chavez, Mr. Baca danced in the ballets The Nutcracker, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, Petrushka, and The Rite of Spring. As a Ballet Master, Roman has taught and coached at the Nutmeg Conservatory for the Arts, Connecticut Dance Theatre, the New Mexico Ballet Company, Connecticut Ballet, Ballet Theatre Company, New York Dance, and Armonk Dance. Mr. Baca's early choreographic studies were premiered at Choreographic Showcases sponsored by the Dance Theatre of the Southwest, Nutmeg Ballet and the New Mexico Ballet Company.
Spotlight: In early 2000, Roman enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. Deployed to Fallujah, Iraq, Sgt. Baca continued to seek opportunities for his art form; the occasion raised with an Iraqi translator who grew up break-dancing as a young Iraqi child in Baghdad. The translator shared videos, music and stories of dance in his country, offering Sgt. Baca the unique chance to see private Iraqi parties and dances that were hidden from the outside world. Thanks to this experience, Roman conceived an original choreography stemming from nuances of local culture and building thru the emotions of deployed soldiers an imaginative cultural bridge.
“...incredible contrast of elements-
Marines and
Ballet Dancers.”
-Audience member
Click here to have
a cup of coffee
with Roman
Roman is a recipient of a 2009 producing and presenting grant from the Ajkun Ballet Theatre and Access DanceUSA Scholarship from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and DanceNYC, and the Connecticut Wartime Veterans Medal.