By Damien Jaques Senior Contributing Editor Published Dec 03, 2010 at 1:01 PM

The Milwaukee Ballet's 2010 edition of "The Nutcracker" is around the corner, and that again raises the profile of artistic director Michael Pink, who has been on a creative tear in the early months of this season. "Esmeralda," his new take on his older ballet "The Hunchback of Notre Dame," received its world premiere at the Marcus Center in October, and Pink choreographed the Milwaukee Rep's big production of "Cabaret" in September.

It was the first time he has worked with the Rep, but anyone surprised that he would sign on to choreograph a Broadway musical doesn't know the man or his work.

Pink -- who just signed a five-year contract extension with the Ballet -- was born into a theatrical family in England. His parents met in an amateur production of a musical, and he was a child actor, appearing in Shakespeare and pantomimes, that uniquely British style of musical comedy. Pink's siblings were also involved in theater, and Broadway show tunes were the background music of family life.

Young Michael sought ballet training because his mother thought it would be useful for his singing and acting ambitions. Those dreams took a detour into an unexpected career when he was accepted at the elite Royal Ballet School in London. A decade of performing with the English National Ballet followed.

Dancing many leading roles, Pink partnered with Natalia Makarova and worked with Nureyev. "But I was always dissatisfied as a dancer and got out at 28," he said during a long chat in his modest office at the Milwaukee Ballet headquarters in Walker's Point.

That dissatisfaction is reflected in his choreography as well as the way he has structured the Milwaukee Ballet. You could say his family background is evident in the story ballets he favors and the highly theatrical production values he incorporates into his work.

The Englishman speaks of the emotional content of dance and notes that dancers do not receive acting training. He describes his choreographic style as deeply rooted in storytelling and theater, and like a stage director Pink emphasizes honesty in performance.

"I don't want to be part of what is perceived as an elitist art form for the ladies who lunch," he said.

Pink's Gothic ballet "Dracula" has been performed from New Zealand to Denver, where the Colorado Ballet has revived it four times after the original 2001 staging there. He took the classic ballet favorite "Giselle" and moved it into a World War II ghetto for his "Giselle 1943." His new ballet "Peter Pan" was a huge critical and box office hit at the Marcus Center last spring.

Retooling the Milwaukee Ballet structure, Pink pancaked the traditional ballet hierarchy, emphasizing an ensemble of equals rather than a company led by stars.

"If you strive to be a poor relation to the Kirov Ballet or the Royal Ballet or the New York City Ballet, you will always be mediocre," the artistic director said. "We have 25 unionized dancers. I don't regard any person more important than the next one.

"They are all hand picked. You check your ego at the door. You work for the greater good of the company."

That was not the case when Pink arrived here in 2002. "When I came here, if neither of the two leading ladies were on stage, people (audience members) would complain to me," Pink recalled. Not anymore.

The theatrical crafts of scenic, lighting and costume design are essential partners in Pink's choreography. "Production values are so important, and we have been working to raise them at the Milwaukee Ballet since I got here," he said. "We are building the level of tech support a company like this should have."

For those who assume that means oversized budgets, Pink can prove otherwise. The brand new "Peter Pan" cost $370,000.

"A million dollars is the magic number for a new ballet in America. Give me a million, and I will give you three full productions," he said.

Pink's eight years with the Milwaukee Ballet make him the longest serving artistic director in the company's 40-year history. He was also in the running for the top creative jobs at the Boston Ballet and the Royal New Zealand Ballet when he interviewed here. Family considerations were a large factor in his choosing to come to Milwaukee.

"My wife and I wanted to have an environment where we could settle down a bit and raise the kids," he explained. "And New Zealand is an island on the other end of the world." The Pinks have three children.

"The potential has always been here," the Englishman says of the Milwaukee Ballet. "There truly is a market here for a ballet company that fits into community."

Pink is not the only person who thinks that. The UWM Peck School of the Arts and Froedtert & Medical College of Wisconsin have joined the Milwaukee Ballet in a partnership formed to develop a new joint facility in downtown Milwaukee.

The development would include a new home for the Ballet and its large school, a 300-400 seat state-of-the-art dance performance space for use by the Ballet and the Peck School of the Arts, and a full sports medicine clinic operated by Froedtert and the Medical College. The Ballet would continue to mount all of its major productions at the Marcus Center but would have the option of also performing in the smaller space.

The Milwaukee Ballet has outgrown its present facility on 5th and National, which has been its home since 1979, and the 109-year-old building is crumbling around the company.

Ballet executive director Dennis Buehler reports the project partners are seeking a site near the Marcus Center and the Water Street entertainment corridor.

Two foundations have committed $2 million to finance the project's initial steps. Buehler says the Ballet hopes to have the development up and running within five years.

In the meantime, "The Nutcracker" opens Dec. 10 for a Marcus Center engagement through Dec. 26.

Damien Jaques Senior Contributing Editor

Damien has been around so long, he was at Summerfest the night George Carlin was arrested for speaking the seven dirty words you can't say on TV. He was also at the Uptown Theatre the night Bruce Springsteen's first Milwaukee concert was interrupted for three hours by a bomb scare. Damien was reviewing the concert for the Milwaukee Journal. He wrote for the Journal and Journal Sentinel for 37 years, the last 29 as theater critic.

During those years, Damien served two terms on the board of the American Theatre Critics Association, a term on the board of the association's foundation, and he studied the Latinization of American culture in a University of Southern California fellowship program. Damien also hosted his own arts radio program, "Milwaukee Presents with Damien Jaques," on WHAD for eight years.

Travel, books and, not surprisingly, theater top the list of Damien's interests. A news junkie, he is particularly plugged into politics and international affairs, but he also closely follows the Brewers, Packers and Marquette baskeball. Damien lives downtown, within easy walking distance of most of the theaters he attends.