Ballet West is staying in the blockbuster groove for its upcoming 2024-2025 season. After a 60th anniversary edition that brought record attendance not only for the season but also for three major productions, Ballet West is poised to continue the momentum with four Utah premieres, the return of Cinderella, and the 80th anniversary of The … Read more
Ballet West’s 60th anniversary season has been simultaneously a celebration of its groundbreaking legacy in American dance and an exploration of fresh artistic possibilities going into the second quarter of the 21st century. Phil Chan, an internationally known choreographer whose organization Final Bow for Yellowface initially engaged the ballet world’s artistic gatekeepers to resist treating … Read more
Ballet West’s mixed repertory production Love and War generated some of the season’s most meaningful, sensitive performances of the company’s 60th anniversary season. The program note by Adam Sklute, the company’s artistic director, summarized it well: “Love & War is designed to reflect our humanity, showing us our individual soulful divinity, our power and defiance, … Read more
EDITOR’S NOTE: The Utah Review is grateful to Chris Myers of Argyle Arts for being a guest reviewer. Over the last week, Ballet West continued their 60th anniversary season with a sold-out run of Swan Lake. Perhaps the most iconic non-Nutcracker in the repertoire, Swan Lake is a monumental classic filled with complex imagery and … Read more
It is fitting that Ballet West’s 60th anniversary season would include a production of Swan Lake, which opens today in the Capitol Theatre and will run through Feb. 17. Willam Christensen, Ballet West founder, staged the first American production of this Russian classic in 1940, during his tenure as San Francisco Ballet’s artistic director. At … Read more
EDITOR’S NOTE: Ballet West is celebrating its 60th anniversary and the newest production, which opens Nov. 3, is a tribute to Willam F. Christensen, who co-founded the company. Featured are Christensen’s version of The Firebird, the world premiere of Fever Dream by Joshua Whitehead, recently retired and long-term Ballet West artist, and George Balanchine’s Stars … Read more
It might surprise many readers that for critics, writing a review of The Nutcracker ballet is actually not as easy as it might appear. It is one of the most widely performed works in the end-of-the-year holiday season and audiences love it, whether it is in a lavish professional production or a small-town amateur community … Read more
In The Dance of The Building, the ingeniously crafted sixth episode of the In The Balance: Ballet for a Lost Year documentary series, one of the crew leaders for setting the stage of Ballet West’s performances in the Capitol Theatre in downtown Salt Lake City, explains that the real legacy of civilizations in history comprises … Read more
Emeralds, rubies and diamonds will grace the stage of the Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre beginning November 2 through 10 as the curtain rises on the 55th season of Ballet West performances. Returning to the Ballet West stage, Jewels is a pivotal masterpiece of legendary choreographer George Balanchine. The triple bill—which features three approximately 20-minute … Read more
For the closing program of the 2015 season, Ballet West has chosen to highlight the developing works of young choreographers—mostly from their own core dance troupe. Ballet West Artistic Director Adam Sklute explains, “For Innovations 2015, I am excited to present the work of a talented Utah native, three Ballet West artists including two women, … Read more