The Artists Alliance
Committed to the Cause
Since our founding in 2017, Artist Alliance for Africa has developed and grown in a positive direction. We’re very proud of the diversity of our alliance, and their abilities to contribute their own unique experience and skills to our success. Find out more about some of our team members below.
Nicholas Jones
Nick was born in the UK and started his vision as a young boy having heard many wonderful stories from his parents about Kenya and its people after they lived there briefly before he was born. Coming from a working class background it has always been a dream of his to give back to the wider community and to help those who are most unfortunate have the opportunities that he had as well as many others. Though his dream is still in its infancy he keeps searching for new ways to incorporate artists from all walks of life and to create new ways by which he can help the children achieve their dreams of becoming Artists. He won't stop working until this dream becomes a reality. He studied at The Royal Ballet School in London for 8 years from age 11-19 before going on to dance as a professional with The Stuttgart Ballet, Ballet du Rhin and Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montreal.
Julia Bergua Orero
Julia is Nick's partner in life and has been an invaluable part of the vision supporting the project since its beginning. She was born in Spain and studied dance in the John Cranko School, Stuttgart, before going onto dance with The Stuttgart Ballet, Ballet du Rhin and now with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montreal since 2018. Her patience with all helps the team work best and it is through her that everything mediates. She provides much needed assistance to Nick with directing and organising the whole program and without her it would not have been possible to do. The children have come to know her very well over the years and look to her constantly for assurance and guidance which she is always willing to give. Her calm demeanour helps the whole project work as gracefully as possible.
Aiara Iturrioz
Aiara is from Spain and she started studying dance at the age of 7 at the conservatory in Vitoria, where she stayed for ten years. After that she went to the John Cranko School in Stuttgart until 2012, when she graduated and then joined the Stuttgart Ballet. She's a very supportive friend, hardworking and creative. She's always searching for new ways in which she can help reach our goals. On top of that, she has some experience from 2017, when she did an educational volunteering in Zimbabwe. Also, she taught ballet class via Zoom to the children, and they had a great time so we can't wait for the moment when she can travel to Kenya and meet them in person. We are pretty sure that they will fall in love with her.
Oliver Jones
Oliver is Nick's brother and has been an indispensable artist to the alliance keeping the momentum and motivation going since day one. He studied Dance at the Royal Ballet School, Canada's National Ballet School as well as the John Cranko Schule in Germany. He began his career with the Poznan State Ballet in Poland before going onto dance with The State Opera Oldenburg in Germany since 2016 . Oliver is one of the most supportive artists behind the scenes and often finds innovative ways to help. As an Artist in the Alliance the children greatly appreciate his soft approach and for the team he offers dynamic ideas that help us offer more to the children while pushing all of us to aim higher. He has and will continue to be a pillar of the entire initiative.
Alexander Jones
Alex is also Nick's brother and also trained at the Royal Ballet School in London for 8 years. He has been a professional the longest starting with The Stuttgart Ballet in 2005. He rapidly rose to the rank of Principal there and now holds the same position with The Zurich Ballet in Switzerland. Alex is a great support to the team as well as his brothers and has been offering his help since the beginning. With 15 years of professional experience he has many a fun story to tell the children from the day to day of being a dancer and all the great roles he has danced. Alex also works with What Dance Can Do, an organisation in Zurich who have partnered with us and Anno's Africa to help with the 2nd year of workshops and the Gala.
Kiara Felder
Kiara studied with the Pacific Northwest Ballet School and comes from the U.S.A. She is currently an artist with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montreal since 2017 and before she was a dancer with The Atlanta Ballet between 2012 and 2017. Kiara came with us on our 2nd trip to Kenya and performed in the first Gala we ever did in Nairobi. She brought much optimism to the team and a sense of calm that was much needed in stressful times. It is thanks to her artistry that she provided the children with much inspiration as they watched her dance. The kids also greatly appreciated her patience and care while she taught them the many insights to dance and look forward to her coming back for another year.
Robert Robinson
Born in the U.K, Robert went to Elmhurst school of Dance, upon graduating he joined the Stuttgart Ballet in 2011 and went on to rise to the position of Soloist in the company. Upon leaving Rob decided to take a two year period freelancing around the world and discovered many new art forms in different countries before returning to Europe to join Hannover Ballet in 2019 under the new director Marco Goeke.He also has his own company by the name of Balletworks which does valuable work in the U.K in developing Art. Rob is and has been one of our most valuable artists and is always bringing a loving energy to all he does. The Children certainly appreciate his guidance and creativity as do we and we will be working alongside each other for many years to come.
Diana Leon
Diana comes from Mexico and attended the National Ballet School of Cuba as a student. She then went on to join the National Dance company of Mexico before then moving to Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montreal where she danced for 4 years. She also has her own company by the name Vias which she founded in 2016. Diana joined us on our mission in Kenya for the summer of 2019 and was the the person we could rely on to organise the other artists as well as offering the children a broad insight into artistry in the 21st century. The children took great joy in her teaching and guidance, always offering her time and help in anyway she could. Diana is a valuable member of the team.
James Lyttle
James comes from Australia and has been a dancer with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montreal since 2017 and before was a dancer at the Bavarian State Ballet in Munich from 2012 to 2017. He started his career with the Australian Ballet as an apprentice for 2 years. He is one of our newer Artists and came with us to participate in our 2nd Gala in 2019. James is a great team artist and helped us in more ways than one. The children really loved his fun approach to a serious art form and many laughs were shared between them. He taught the kids a lot about the other essential parts of being a Dancer such as fitness and health and brought another perspective of being an artist to them. A valuable part of the team and a great coach for the dancers when rehearsing.
Alessa Rogers
Alessa was born in the USA and trained at the North Carolina School of Arts before going to dance professionaly with The Atlanta Ballet, Ballet du Rhin and currently she is a Dancer with The Royal Swedish Ballet since 2018. Alessa came with the alliance in our first Gala year in 2018 and was a brilliant artist to have around, always keeping things bright and fun while maintaining her professionalism in the work. When it came to the children she was simply amazing and always took a hands on approach, never unwilling to get on with the work at hand in teaching the children. The children welcomed her with open arms and thoroughly enjoyed her coaching skills alongside her fun character. We look forward to continuing this mission with her in the years to come.
Roger Neves
Roger is from Brazil and has been a close friend of the Alliance since its founding. He trained to dance in Brazil before then moving to Croatia to join the Croation National Ballet as a Demi-soloist. Then he moved to Germany to join the Stuttgart Ballet and after his experience there he joined the Karlsruhe Staatsballet before then going on to join the Ballets de Monte-Carlo in 2018.
While in Kenya with us Roger was extremely supportive and acted as a gel for the group. With the children he is a warm and inviting character and they found trust in him. He is a great teacher and provides the children a lifetime of grand experiences and can relate very well to their daily struggles. Roger will be returning in the future.