Dance
Ballet West’s spirited “Nutcracker” returns for a welcome revival – Dec 11, 2023
Emily Adams and Hadriel Diniz in Ballet West’s Nutcracker. Photo: Beau Pearson
WASHINGTON. Nutcracker season is upon us. The Kennedy Center has taken to presenting its sumptuous performances of the Tchaikovsky favorite over Thanksgiving weekend, with a different American company invited each year in a pleasing rotation of different productions.
This year, Utah’s Ballet West made its fourth trip to the Opera House with its storybook staging, based on the first complete Nutcracker in the United States, choreographed by Willam F. Christensen.
Seen at the Sunday matinee performance, this visit offered a second chance to take … Read More
“Dracula” rises again in Ballet West’s devilishly entertaining revival – Oct 22, 2023
Amy Potter as Flora and Tyler Gum in the title role of Ballet West’s Dracula. Photo: Beau Pearson.
What are the odds of encountering Franz Liszt’s Totentanz on consecutive nights performed in two wholly different genres?
Such was the case with Liszt’s work—performed by pianist Joyce Yang with the Utah Symphony Friday night and then again as part of the score for Ballet West’s highly entertaining and atmospheric revival of Dracula Saturday at the Lawson Capitol Theatre.
Ben Stevenson’s devilishly clever adaptation, debuted at Houston Ballet in 1997, is becoming … Read More
Ballet West closes season with a bracing blast of classic modernism – Apr 17, 2023
Ballet West performed Stravinsky’s Les Noces Friday night. Photo: Beau Pearson
The final Ballet West production of the season finds the company tucking away grandiose Romantic narratives for three short, exploratory works. In these less-often-seen works from some of the most notable artists of the 20th century, Ballet West showcased the strength and skills of their dancers Friday night in a style of dance as much informed by ballet as it is modern choreography, folk dance and he avant garde.
The main work of … Read More
Ballet West’s “Snow White” for young people proves an enjoyable show for all ages – Apr 08, 2023
Jonas Malinka-Thompson as the Prince and Stella Birkinshaw in the title role of Ballet West II’s Snow White. Photo: Beau Pearson
In his program statement for Snow White, Ballet West artistic director Adam Sklute writes that the show was “created to introduce children and families to the joys of this magical art form.” Ballet’s West’s ballet mistress, Pamela Robinson-Harris choreographed this production in 2019 to her own selection of music from Grieg and Johann Strauss II as a part of the company’s … Read More
Ballet West’s “Sleeping Beauty” awakens classic to brilliant life – Feb 12, 2023
Emily Adams performs the title role in Ballet West’s Sleeping Beauty. Photo: Beau Pearson
In Ballet West’s production of Sleeping Beauty, which opened Friday night at the Lawson Capitol Theatre, the company finds modern novelty in one of the most famous and renowned repertoire ballets.
While the show revives the 2011 joint choreography by Pamela Robinson-Harris (Prologue and Act II) and Mark Goldweber (Acts I and III), the current show features brand-new sets from Alain Vaes in all but Act II. These are subtle and … Read More
Ballet West’s timeless “Nutcracker” serves up another round of seasonal joy for all ages – Dec 03, 2022
Ballet West’s The Nutcracker runs through December 24. File photo: Beau Pearson
Another December means another round of Ballet West’s beloved Nutcracker.
Now in its 67th season, this venerable Nutcracker builds on the renowned choreography and staging of Willam F. Christensen and provides undoubtedly the biggest show of the year for the company. Year after year, Ballet West sells out a dozen or so performances, proving that Utah audiences have an insatiable hunger for this holiday tradition.
Friday night’s opening night performance showed … Read More
Ballet West’s program of short works delivers with “Rodeo” and Balanchine/Bach – Nov 14, 2022
Jenna Rae Herrera and Tyler Gum in Ballet West’s Rodeo. Photo: Beau Pearson
Ballet West’s most recent program forgoes the massive, three-act ballets that crowd the rest of its current season for three shorter pieces from the canon. While many audience members like a big, bold melodrama, mixed lineups such as this offer less grand and more specific explorations.
At its best, the show, seen at its closing performance Saturday night, presented some of the unique strengths of Ballet West in ways … Read More
Ballet West brings fresh dramatic life and nuance to Cranko’s timeless “Onegin” – Oct 23, 2022
Katlyn Addison as Tatiana and Adrian Fry in the title role of Onegin at Ballet West. Photo: Beau Pearson
Ballet West opens their 59th season with a lauded classic, John Cranko’s setting of Alexander Pushkin’s 19th century verse novel, Eugene Onegin.
This well-known tale of love offered, rejected and offered and rejected again—made into a celebrated opera by Tchaikovsky, which here supplies the music (arranged by Kurt-Heinz Stolze)—serves as a fitting base for a dramatic ballet. The tale among the well-heeled Russian nobility … Read More
Ballet West, Harlem Dance Theater team up for bracing variety in Choreographic Fest V – May 12, 2022
Emily Adams and Hadriel Diniz in “Galantheae” at Ballet West’s Choreographic Fest. Photo: Beau Pearson
Ballet West’s Choreographic Fest returns for its fifth year and first collaborative effort since 2019, when the Covid-19 pandemic halted the festival.
Joined by the Dance Theater of Harlem, Ballet West presented world premieres of Sophie Laplane’s “Galantheae” and Juliano Nunes’ “Orange” alongside Robert Garland’s “Higher Ground” and Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s “Balamouk.” The works differed widely in their narrative scope, approaches to movement and music, and understanding … Read More
No “I” in company: Ballet West ensemble shines in pairing of Robbins and Fonte – Apr 03, 2022
Ballet West performed Nicolo Fonte’s Carmina Burana Saturday night at the Capitol Theatre. Photo: Beau Pearson.
Ballet West is celebrating the expressiveness and versatility of its individual dancers this month with two contemporary works: Jerome Robbins’ original choreography for Philip Glass’ Glass Pieces; and Nicolo Fonte’s setting of Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana, which had its world premiere with this company in 2017.
In Friday night’s opening performance at the Capitol Theatre, both pieces contained worthwhile feature moments, particularly from exiting company stars Beckanne … Read More
