Nutcracker Guest Artists

Gabrielle Mengden trained at the Allegro West Academy of Dance in her hometown of Houston, Texas before training on scholarship at Houston Ballet and later at the Sarasota Cuban Ballet School. In 2015, Mengden performed by invitation at the International Ballet Festival of Havana in Cuba. During this time, they won gold medals and various awards in competitions including the Youth America Grand Prix, New York City Dance Alliance, American Ballet Competition and Dance Masters of America - Grand National Champion - Finals. Also receiving Distinctions Grade 2 - Advanced 2 with the Royal Ballet Academy of Dance. 
In 2018, Mengden attended the Oklahoma City Ballet Summer Intensive and was invited to join the Studio Company in 2018. Mengden quickly rose through the ranks throughout a few years and gained the title of Soloist in 2023, now currently a Professional Freelance Ballet Dancer and Ballet Instructor. 

Mengden has performed in multiple works, mainly Soloist and Principle roles in esteemed works from world renowned choreographers and productions varying from Classical, Neo Classical, and Contemporary repertoire. Such as, Septime Webre’s ALICE (in wonderland), Robert Mill’s The Nutcracker and Pushing Pennies pas de deux, Jerome Robbins’ 2 & 3 Part Inventions, Val Caniparoli’s Lady of the Camellias, Twyla Tharp’s The Golden Section, Alexander Ekman’s Cacti, Stephen Mill’s Hamlet, Ryan Jolicoeur-Nye’s The Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella. Gerald Arpino’s Birthday Variations, and George Balanchine’s Western Symphony and Divertimento No.15, among many other works.

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Erik Thordal-Christensen, Principal, born in Copenhagen, Denmark and trained at Los Angeles Ballet
School under the instruction of Colleen Neary and Thordal Christensen. He danced as a soloist with
Estonian National Ballet, Oklahoma City Ballet, Boston Ballet, Los Angeles Ballet, and Sarasota Ballet.
He has danced and guested with many companies around the United States and Europe. His repertoire
includes many roles in classical, neoclassical, and contemporary pieces from choreographies such as
George Balanchine, August Bournonville, Jiri Kylian, William Forsythe, Frederick Ashton, Jose Limon,
Twyla Tharp, and Serge Lifar.

​He has an extensive repertoire of principal and soloist roles such as Prince Desire in The Sleeping Beauty,
Sugar Plum Cavalier and Drosselmeyer in The Nutcracker, Albrecht in Giselle, Franz in Coppelia, James in
Bournonville’s La Sylphide, Espada in Don Quixote, Ali in Le Corsaire, Romeo, Tybalt, and Paris in Romeo
& Juliet, Adagio Man in Serge Lifar’s Suite en Blanc, Iago in Jose Limon’s The Moor’s Pavane, Lysander in
Frederick Ashton’s The Dream, Sangunic in George Balanchine’s The Four Temperaments, Arthur in
Michael Pink’s Dracula, and many others.