MIAMI CITY BALLET LIGHTS! CAMERA! ACTION!

By: CultureOwl

09/09/2019

Performing Arts

MIAMI CITY BALLET LIGHTS! CAMERA! ACTION!

Dance has the ability to transport us to a different world - it is often thought that dancers are untouchable beings. We’re just regular human beings, who are passionate about ballet and dance and have dedicated our lives to perfecting our art form.

This season is so exciting, given the variety of programs which will show how we’re able to transform ourselves throughout each piece. I welcome the challenge of our versatile programs and I am super excited to share each opportunity with you and transport you to another world.”

~ Emily Bromberg, Principal Soloist

“This company is truly a rare national gem–and it’s Miami’s own. As one of the top ballet companies, it gives us the distinct opportunity to work one-on-one with world renowned choreographers like Alexei Ratmansky, Twyla Tharp and Justin Peck. MCB is so diverse artistically, and this season is a beautiful showcase of that range.”

~ Samantha Galler, Soloist

Balanchine meets Broadway in this ground-breaking crime thriller. Richard Rodgers’ tantalizing score sets the scene – a seedy 1930s speakeasy where danger lurks amid the revelry. Slaughter On Tenth Avenue tells the story of a tap dancer who falls for a stripper, who has a heart of gold but she is in with the wrong crowd. As the lovers dance together late at night, her brutal gangster boyfriend is hiding in the shadows waiting for the moment to pull the trigger… will the police nab him in time or will she die in the arms of her one true love? Full of delightfully unsavory characters, hilarious hijinks and the thrill of new romance – you’ll love this sensual and moving blend of ballet, tap and jazz with a vaudeville heart. This program also includes Balanchine’s STRAVINSKY VIOLIN CONCERTO and a tribute to the late Paul Taylor with his MERCURIC TIDINGS, an ‘exhilarating, blisteringly fast dance.’ (Miami Herald)

Miami City Ballet’s holiday spectacle transports you to a dazzling winter wonderland in George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker®. Step into this magical world of toy soldiers, colorful characters, and the enchanting “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy”, set to the music of Tchaikovsky and performed by a live orchestra. Create unforgettable memories with friends and family – make it your cherished holiday tradition!

Miami City Ballet is joined by two larger than life stars, Fred Astaire and Rita Hayworth, dancing and gliding alongside Miami City Ballet dancers in Jerome Robbins’ stunning I’m Old Fashioned. I’m Old Fashioned opens with Hayworth and Astaire dancing a sparkling duet from the 1942 film, “You Were Never Lovelier”. As they sail across a huge screen, the MCB dancers interact with the film stars and give new life to the original silver screen choreography. Balanchine famously called Fred Astaire “the greatest dancer in the world”, and Astaire was reportedly honored that Robbins had been inspired to create this work…From all sides, this delightful tribute to the Golden Age of Hollywood is big, glamorous and simply irresistible!

This program also includes the company premiere of Christopher Wheeldon’s This Bitter Earth with its gorgeously haunting music by Max Richter in a musical mash up with the spectacular Dinah Washington. This elegant and powerful work will take your breath away; Plus, Tschaikovsky Pas De Deux and Ratmansky’s Symphonic Dances

The Season’s crowning event features two company premieres. Alive with color, excitement, and spectacular effects, this original production of Firebird is a fantastical story about magic, love, danger, and liberation – one of the greatest of all fairy tales. This new production of Firebird features elaborate, reimagined costume and set designs that enhance the beloved story, music and renowned choreography. Prince Ivan, a young hunter, strays into a mystical forest and becomes spellbound by the exotic, immortal Firebird. She gives him an enchanted feather that will summon her when he is in dire need. When Ivan falls in love with a beautiful Princess who is under the control of the evil sorcerer Kaschei and his monstrous minions, he calls the Firebird, and this bewitching tale unfolds. Don’t miss this lush, gorgeous premiere.

Miami City Ballet also premieres Justin Peck’s RODEO: FOUR DANCE EPISODES. Featuring a cast of 15 men and one female dancer, Rodeo: Four Dance Episodes is a ground-breaking work that challenges conventions and showcases the power of MCB’s exceptional male dancers. Tony Award-winning Justin Peck’s thrilling choreography works together with Aaron Copland’s beloved American score to make “many people rejoice watching dance in the 21st... Its effect on the audience is inspiring.” New York Times

This amazing three-set program includes NINE SINATRA SONGS, Twyla Tharp’s audience favorite with the best of Frank Sinatra’s swinging hits and seven swirling couples in costumes by the dazzling Oscar de la Renta.

Into the town square rides the fabled Don Quixote, searching for his idea of womanhood and accompanied by his faithful sidekick, Sancho Panza. This is a vibrant, kaleidoscopic delight with ruffed skirts swirling, toreadors strutting, street dancers cavorting plus flower girls, a troop of gypsies and more in this unforgettable, fully staged production. With its hummable Minkus score, Don Quixote is a never-ending stream of pleasure, climaxed by the famous Pas de Deux and punctuated by one of Petipa’s most beautiful vision scenes. It’s classical dancing at its most exquisite – and demanding. The leaps! The balances! The bravura!

On Ratmansky’s Symphonic Dances, a dramatic, fast-paced work by one of the world most sought-after visionary choreographers, Alexei Ratmansky:

“This is such a special work, because Alexei Ratmansky created this for Miami City Ballet. It’s ours, and he created it with us in mind; through our movements and our bodies.

His works aren’t just about musicality, but also movement quality. What I love about working with Ratmansky is that he pulls and stretches out the artist in you. And I think it shows up in his Symphonic Dances - it shows in all his pieces. He really works with the dancers and allows you the room for your interpretation of his choreography.

The work is Ratmansky’s mood for that time that he was choreographing. It’s happy, sad, and it’s complete emotion…but then it’s nothing…and it’s everything. He’s a very artistic, emotional person and you can see it. His choreography doesn’t lie. It’s raw and when he works with the dancers, he pulls that raw emotion out of the dancers. He took something human and crafted this ballet out of it.”

~ Jennifer Lauren, Principal Dancer