Mr. Septime Webre was appointed artistic director of The Washington Ballet in 1999, after a six year tenure as artistic director of American Repertory Ballet in New Jersey. In his tenure as TWB’s artistic director, The Washington Ballet’s impact regionally, nationally and internationally has deepened in three areas. First, the Company’s work has continued to grow and expand in its level of excellence and bold creativity with projects including the “American Experience,” a series featuring original full-length ballets based on iconic works of American literature, and the pursuit of full-length original classic works including Swan Lake, a significant milestone for a dance company. Also, The Washington School of Ballet’s enrollment has tripled and the organization’s commitment to community through its visionary DanceDC and TWB programs has positively affected the lives of tens of thousands of children in the District of Columbia. Much in demand as a choreographer, Mr. Webre has created works that appear in the repertoires of many companies in North America, including Pacific Northwest Ballet, Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, North Carolina Dance Theatre, Ballet Austin, and Atlanta Ballet. As a dancer, he was featured in works by George Balanchine, Paul Taylor, Antony Tudor, Alvin Ailey and Merce Cunningham, as well as in principal and solo roles from the classical repertoire. Mr. Webre has sat on the boards of Dance/USA and the Cultural Alliance of Greater Washington. Among his many awards, he received the DC Mayor’s Arts Award for Visionary Leadership, Excellence in Artistic Discipline and numerous metro DC dance awards. He is the seventh son in a large Cuban American family and graduated from the University of Texas with a B.A. in history and pre-law.