New York City Ballet principals and other American ballet stars head for South Africa

| May 16, 2014 | 0 Comments
Principal dancer at New York City Ballet, Ashley Bouder, joins Joaquin de Luz and other American ballet stars on a trip to South Africa.

Principal dancer at New York City Ballet, Ashley Bouder, joins fellow NYCB principal Joaquin de Luz and other American ballet stars on a trip to South Africa. Photo courtesy Stars of American Ballet.

For the first time in over thirty years – which essentially translates to “for the first time ever” for our younger ballet enthusiasts – a group of American ballet dancers are travelling to South Africa to perform in a limited season of The Stars of American Ballet, a production featuring acclaimed dancers from New York City Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, San Francisco Ballet, Boston Ballet and more, on at Montecasino’s Teatro in Johannesburg from 20 to 22 June 2014.

See works never yet performed in SA

The gala programme, presented by local ballet entrepreneur Dirk Badenhorst, will include highlights from major classics such as Le Corsaire, Don Quixote and Diana and Actaeon, but will also showcases works never before performed in South Africa, such as George Balanchine’s Broadway inspired classic Who Cares? to the much-loved music by George Gershwin.

Joaquin de Luz, New York City Ballet principal dancer and the director of this production, commented in New York on the upcoming historic visit to South Africa:

“My fellow dancers and I are looking forward to our visit and the opportunity to dance for South African audiences under Dirk Badenhorst’s banner. We have assembled a group of outstanding American stars and a repertoire of classical ballet highlights that will show them at their best.”

He adds, “We are also bringing some pieces that SA audiences have not had the opportunity to see as well as works by legendary choreographer George Balanchine. So it will be a blend of the new and the familiar that we know will thrill and enthral”.

Watch this short video of Joaquin de Luz performing a variation from Le Corsaire:

Big names in American ballet

The 5-performance-only run at the Teatro at Montecasino features dancers Adiarys Almeida, Ashley Bouder, Joaquin de Luz, Isaac Hernandez, Jonhal Fernandez, Joseph Gatti, Anna Maria Lucaciu, Amar Ramasar, Ana Sofia Scheller, Andi Schermoly, Daniel Ulbricht, Indiana Woodward and Michaela DePrince (star of the First Position movie and who has previously danced to acclaim in Joburg Ballet’s productions of Le Corsaire and Don Quixote).

US ballet star, Michaela De Prince, returns to SA for her third visit to perform in Stars of American Ballet. Photo courtesy of Joburg Ballet

US ballet star Michaela De Prince returns to SA for her third visit to perform in Stars of American Ballet. Photo courtesy Joburg Ballet

Commenting on the coming visit in June, presenter Dirk Badenhorst said: “No-one sets the stage alight quite like America’s great classical ballet stars, with the speed, sense of daring, and razzmatazz that is so unique to American ballet. For this reason I am delighted to be able to bring these great dancers to South Africa and to offer our audiences something we don’t often see here: classical ballet in the American style.”

Booking Details:

Dates: 20 June 2014 at 8pm; 21 June 2014 at 3pm and 8pm; 22 June at 11am and 3pm.
Venue: The Teatro at Montecasino, Johannesburg
Tickets: from R150 to R420 via Computicket.

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Category: Dance News

About the Author ()

Hi, I'm Robynn, and I'm a student of the potential of the body, the marvels of the mind, and the beauty of it all combined in ballet. As the editor, BodyMindBallet is where I get to learn, to share and to enjoy this wide world of dance - and with every day I gain an ever richer respect for the athleticism of dance and the skill of performance artistry.

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