January 2011.
Miami City Ballet continues its 25th Anniversary Season in South Florida with Program II and the Company Premiere of Twyla Tharp’s exhilarating Baker’s Dozen. Program II also features George Balanchine’s haunting La Sonnambula and buoyant Western Symphony. The Opus One Orchestra will play, under the baton of maestro Gary Sheldon, 42 to 56 musicians strong, supported by a grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, as part of its Knight Arts Challenge.
The Company Premiere of Baker’s Dozen showcases choreographer Twyla Tharp’s “prankster sense of humor” (The Times) as she flings a dozen dancers onto the stage, dressed in smoothly shaped, silky cream clothes by designer Santo Loquasto – hustling, spinning, shimmying, yet romantically inclined – to the irresistible stride piano of the immortal Willie “The Lion” Smith. Since its inception, the dance has held the public’s attention as a special Tharp classic, mixing nostalgic and contemporary emotions all together.
La Sonnambula (The Sleepwalker) is a haunting tale of exotic intrigue, a one-act Balanchine ballet, set during a mysterious masked ball. This dark romance centers around four main characters: the Baron, who is the host of the masked ball, his mistress – the Coquette, his wife – the Sleepwalker, and the poet, a guest at the ball who is romantically interested in the Coquette yet captivated by the beautiful and mysterious sleepwalker. Music and libretto is by Vittorio Rieti with romantic period costumes by Theoni V. Aldredge.
Western Symphony was created by George Balanchine out of his fascination for the American Wild West. One of Balanchine’s most joyous ballets, Western Symphony, is set to themes based on traditional western songs, among them such favorites as “Red River Valley” and “Good Night, Ladies.” The ballet merges Wild West Stereotypes with classical ballet conventions, offering the audience a seemingly incompatible combination and a good deal of humor. Set in a frontier town in the Wild West with music compiled by Hershey Kay with Western-inspired costumes by the famed designer Karinska.
Audrey Love Charitable Foundation presents Miami City Ballet’s 25th Anniversary Season of Dance. Miami City Ballet dedicates its 25th Anniversary Season to Founder Toby Lerner Ansin.
Performance Schedule and Information: Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts (1300 Biscayne Blvd., Miami) Friday, January 7 at 8:00 p.m. Saturday, January 8 at 8:00 p.m. Sunday, January 9 at 2:00 p.m. Broward Center for the Performing Arts (201 SW Fifth Ave., Ft. Lauderdale) Friday, January 14 at 8:00 p.m. Saturday, January 15 at 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. Sunday, January 16 at 2:00 p.m. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts (701 Okeechobee Blvd., West Palm Beach) Friday, January 28 at 8:00 p.m. Saturday, January 29 at 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. Sunday, January 30 at 1:00 p.m.
Miami City Ballet 2200 Liberty Avenue Miami Beach, FL 33139 Ph: 305.929.7010 www.miamicityballet.org
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