Welcome our guest artists for The Nutcracker!
Melissa Chapski (Sugar Plum) was born in Medfield, Massachusetts. She trained at BalletFranklin under the instruction of Cheryl Madeux from the age of 11. She danced in FPAC Holiday Productions’ Nutcracker for 6 years, featured in roles from Marzipan to Party Girls and Cousins, Snow, Flowers, Arabian, and Clara. In 2015, she graduated from the Ellison Ballet Professional Training Program in New York City.
Melissa danced with the Dutch National Ballet for five years and now dances in Munich, Germany with the Bayerisches Staatsballett (Bavarian State Ballet). Most recently, Melissa performed ‘Embers’ in the Opening Gala at Beijing International Ballet Competition in China.
She was also featured as ‘Emma’ in the movie High Strung: Free Dance and has done ad campaigns for Huawei Mobile, Nikon Europe, TCL Electronics, Discount Dance Supply, Capezio, Body Wrappers, and Russian Pointe. She is currently working towards an undergraduate degree in social sciences at Harvard University's Extension school.
Sava Milojević (Cavalier) was born in Kragujevac, Serbia where he began his ballet training at age 11. He trained from age 14 in Belgrade at Ballet School Lujo DaviÄo for two years. He soon moved to John Cranko Ballet Academy in Stuttgart, Germany where he was taken into the main company as an apprentice after only two years. After one season with the Stuttgart Ballet, he joined the Bavarian State Ballet’s junior company where he spent two seasons. In 2018, he was promoted to the main company under direction of Igor Zelensky where he is employed presently. Sava has also been awarded numerous medals at Serbian national ballet competitions. In 2018, Sava debuted multiple roles in John Neumeier’s Der Nussknacker with the Bavarian State Ballet.
Some of his most notable performances include tours to Japan and South Korea with the Stuttgart Ballet in productions of both Onegin and Romeo and Juliet. He also danced in Romeo and Juliet at the famous Salzburg Festspiel. Later on Sava toured to Hong Kong with the Bavarian State Ballet dancing in La Bayadere.