Ballet West, Utah’s largest dance company, is gearing up for its 60th season — with some world premieres, restaged classics inspired by founder Willam Christensen, flying vampires, a magic swan, and the return of a Christmas staple.
The program for the 2023-2024 season — including three full-length story ballets, three world premieres and a TV broadcast — was announced Wednesday evening at Salt Lake City’s Capitol Theatre, Ballet West’s home stage.
• Opening the season, Oct. 20-28, will be “Dracula,” combining Ben Stevenson’s choreography with music from Franz Liszt — as well as pyrotechnics, flying vampires and a ghostly carriage.
• Nov. 3-11, the troupe will perform “Firebird,” a triple-bill of works honoring Christensen’s “scope and vision.” They include: Christensen’s revival of “The Firebird,” set to Igor Stravinsky’s iconic score; the world premiere of “Fever Dream,” with choreography and music by Joshua Whitehead, a Ballet West demi-soloist; and George Balanchine’s ensemble work “Stars & Stripes,” a patriotic work set to John Philip Sousa’s music.
• The Christmas tradition “The Nutcracker,” which Christensen — “Mr. C.” to those within Ballet West — first choreographed nearly 80 years ago, will make its annual holiday run, Dec. 8-27. Before the Capitol Theatre run, Ballet West will take “The Nutcracker” to Washington’s Kennedy Center, Nov. 22-25, and performances in Ogden.
• Another ballet classic, “Swan Lake,” will be performed Feb. 9-17, 2024. The production is conceived and produced by Adam Sklute, Ballet West’s artistic director, after original choreography by Marius Petipa and Lev Ivanov, with additional choreography by Pamela Robinson-Harris, Ballet West’s principal rehearsal director, and the late Mark Goldweber.
• The Family Classics Series will return with “Beauty and the Beast,” performed by Ballet West II and members of the Ballet West Academy, March 29-30, 2024. The show, designed as an introduction to young audiences to ballet, is conceived and produced by Sklute and choreographed by Robinson-Harris with Peggy Dolkas.
• Another triple-bill, with the umbrella title “Love and War,” will run April 12-20, 2024. The three works featured are: The Utah premiere of “Blake Works I,” by choreographer William Forsythe set to the songs of James Blake; the revival of “Red Angels,” choreographed by Ulysses Dove with music by Richard Einhorn, and featuring four dancers and an electric violin played by Mary Rowell, one of only two people to ever perform the score; and Kurt Jooss’s 1932 work “The Green Table,” performed to a score for two pianos written by Frederick Cohen.
• The season will close with the return of Ballet West’s Choreographic Festival, June 5-8, at the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center, 138 W. 300 South, Salt Lake City. The festival is focusing on Asian choreographers this year, and will feature world premiere works, commissioned by Sklute, by Caili Quan and Zhongjing Fang. Two international guest companies, yet to be announced, will also take part. Ballet West will then take the program to the Kennedy Center, to run June 18-22, 2024.
Single tickets will go on sale on Sept. 5. More information about the season will be available at balletwest.org.
