Jessica Barber was born and raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She began studying ballet at the age of 13 after competing nationally as a figure skater, training under the direction of Roman Jasinski, Matthew Bridwell, and Ronnie Underwood. Ms. Barber attended the University of Missouri-Kansas City to continue her education and worked with Paula Webber, Ronald Tice, DeeAnna Hiett and Tobin James.

 

After one year at UMKC, Ms. Barber accepted a trainee position with Oklahoma City Ballet and was promoted to the studio company the following year. While at Oklahoma City Ballet, Ms. Barber performed in productions of Robert Mills' Swan Lake, The Nutcracker, The Little Mermaid, and performed as a guest artist with Tulsa Dance Company and the Osage Ballet.

 

While dancing with OKC Ballet, Ms. Barber completed her degree in Multimedia Arts with a minor in Spanish from the University of Oklahoma under the advisement of professors from both the School of Dance and Journalism.

 

Ms. Barber joined Ballet Frontier in 2019 and has performed a variety of lead and soloist roles, including the Firebird in Chung Lin Tseng's Firebird, the Sugar Plum Fairy, Dew Drop and Snow Queen in The Nutcracker, Moyna in Giselle, the Crystal Fountain Fairy, Jewels, and the White Cat in The Sleeping Beauty, Big Swans in Swan Lake, the Street Dancer in Don Quixote, and the Pas de Deux couple in Chung Lin Tseng's Variations on a Rococo Theme.

 

This is Ms. Barber's eighth season with Ballet Frontier. 

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