DanceFAR charity event keeps S.F. Ballet alumni on their toes

Caption: San Francisco Ballet soloist James Sofranko in Paul Taylor's "Company B." Credit: Erik Tomasson. Credit: Erik Tomasson 2010 Repertory - Program 2 James Sofranko in Taylor's Company B. (© Erik Tomasson) less Caption: San Francisco Ballet soloist James Sofranko in Paul Taylor's "Company B." Credit: Erik Tomasson. Credit: Erik Tomasson 2010 Repertory - Program 2 James Sofranko in Taylor's Company B. (© Erik ... more Photo: Erik Tomasson., Erik Tomasson Photo: Erik Tomasson., Erik Tomasson Image 1 of / 5 Caption Close DanceFAR charity event keeps S.F. Ballet alumni on their toes 1 / 5 Back to Gallery

When San Francisco Ballet soloist James Sofranko and former SFB members Garen Scribner and Margaret Karl launched Dance for a Reason (DanceFAR) in 2012 (then called Get in Front), to raise funds for the Cancer Prevention Institute of California, they wisely combined world-class dance with an epic afterparty — and they’ve raised more than $300,000 so far. This year’s event on Tuesday, Nov. 18, with proceeds going to CPIC and UCSF’s Melanoma Center, will include an elite roster of dancers from SF Ballet, Alonzo King Lines Ballet, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and more performing at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.

The three met more than a decade ago in the SFB corps, becoming instant friends in the hothouse of daily rehearsals. Sofranko continues to dance as a soloist with SFB, and Karl retired in 2010 to found an event-management company. After a year with Nederlands Dans Theater, Scribner debuts on Broadway in 2015, performing the lead role of Jerry in Christopher Wheeldon’s new “An American in Paris.”

On a cross-country conference call, they talked about DanceFAR and their careers.

Q: So how did three full-time ballet dancers become top-flight event planners overnight?

James Sofranko: We didn’t know what we were getting into!

Garen Scribner: The first year, Jim and I had the same dressing room at the Opera House. Every time a company said they could do a piece, we wrote their name on a Post-It. It was like a story board on our mirror. As things changed, we would move them around, like a little puzzle.

Q: You must have fond memories of dancing together at SF Ballet.

Margaret Karl: Dancing in Wayne McGregor’s “Eden Eden” in 2006 was a game changer; his extreme choreography blew me away. Garen and I had a pas de deux with the most epic exit ever — we couldn’t get in sync and did this awkward spider walk in the wings. We laughed about that for years!

JS: Garen and I were literally attached at the hip in Yuri Possokhov’s “Rite of Spring.” We played the conjoined-twin elders who sentence the Chosen One to a sacrificial death. In rehearsals, we had to get dressed and undressed together, get a drink of water together — Lord help us if we had to use the restroom. It’s a good thing we’re friends.

Q: Garen and Jim, where are your dance careers headed?

GS: I'm passionate about NDT, whom I still work with. “An American in Paris” opens in Paris next month, and I'll perform it there before making my Broadway debut. I'm loving the acting and singing; it’s fun to do it all.

JS: SFB is working on a new ballet from Yuri Possokhov with commissioned music from Shinji Eshima, who also wrote “Raku.” Yuri dreams big, and this ballet is no exception! I consider myself lucky to have had a career at the Ballet for going on 15 years. Unfortunately, you can’t dance forever, and I have already begun some ballet-master work for SFB.

Q: Being so busy and far-flung, how do you still manage to plan DanceFAR?

GS: We do a lot of conference calls! It’s about finding time — right now I’m in my rehearsal clothes on 42nd Street, talking to you guys. Last year, I came to San Francisco for 24 hours to be at the event, then flew back to Amsterdam to dance with NDT. But it rounds out my artistic ventures to give back in a philanthropic way.

Q: You always have great chefs at the afterparty. Who is cooking this year?

MK: Wayfare Tavern, Farallon, Twenty Five Lusk, Waterbar, Epic Roasthouse and Salt House are all donating a signature dish. We also have an open bar with Hoopla wine and Le Grand Courtage champagne. Both years, I’ve literally had to push people out the door when the time was up. That’s the sign of a good party!

Claudia Bauer is a freelance writer.

DanceFAR: 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 18. YBCA Theater, 700 Howard St., San Francisco. Tickets: $50-$250. tickets.ybca.org/single/PSDetail.aspx?psn=19346