Mississippi School of the Arts welcomed Broadway star and dance instructor, Jonathan Sharp, to “Let There Be Light” production. The production, sponsored by the Mississippi School of the Arts Foundation, featured a VIP and dinner reservations, with a full performance by MSA vocal, dance, and theatre students. The fundraising events by the Foundation help pay for guest artists and more. These artists, like Jonathan Sharp, gives our students art experiences not available in any high school elsewhere in the state.
Sharp grew up in Mississippi before leaving the state to further his education in New York at the National Academy of the Arts and the School of American Ballet (SAB), the official school of the New York City Ballet. While on full scholarship at SAB he was trained by master teachers Stanley Williams, Peter Martins, Andrea Kramarevsky, Suzanne Farrell, Alexandra Danilova, Suki Schorer, and Sean Lavery. He danced professionally with the Boston Ballet, the Pennsylvania Ballet, and the touring Stars of American Ballet, headlined by Robert LaFosse and Darci Kistler. He has appeared on Broadway in the original casts of The Red Shoes, Carousel (1994 Tony winner for Best Revival), The Rocky Horror Show Live, The Dance of the Vampires, and Fiddler on the Roof. He has also appeared on television as a contract player on Another World and guest-starred on Law and Order and Gilmore Girls. He has taught at Idyllwild Arts Academy for the past thirteen years and he also teaches and directs internationally. He is currently Associate Director of Inland Pacific Ballet and a principal guest teacher with Pacific Festival Ballet.