Bené Arnold, a seminal figure in Utah’s dance community and Ballet West’s first Ballet Mistress, passed away on January 25, 2024, at the age of 88. Arnold’s legacy is marked by her significant influence in shaping the careers of countless dancers at Ballet West and the University of […]
On Thursday night, around 9 pm, I sat down to watch Ballet West’s latest in their Winter Streaming series — Balanchine’s Rubies. At just over 20 minutes in length, an excavated chunk like this is exactly how much televised ballet I want to watch after staring at my […]
I have not seen (this version of) Nine Sinatra Songs by Ballet West and have no plans to review it. In this show, which was given locally at the Capitol Theatre, Ballet West ignores that more than one in one hundred people in Utah have COVID-19 and they refuse […]
On Friday night, I went to the theater. I even went inside the theater. Ballet West’s Nine Sinatra Songs is a return to the stage, but not a return to normal — and that’s a good thing. The mixed repertoire of three works is the company’s first live […]
Ballet West’s presentation of Giselle at the Capitol Theatre in February was a new re-staging of a familiar ballet classic that was well received by an appreciative audience. The sets, costumes, music, and dancing all showed the high level of artistry and technical perfection that is expected of a […]
David Bintley’s “The Shakespeare Suite,” the title piece of Ballet West’s spring season, opens with Kyle Davis as Hamlet and a chorus of four couples slinking across a maroon carpet, the women dressed like Audrey Hepburn in “Funny Face” and the men (save Davis) in kilts and mesh shirts. Davis and […]
Ballet West’s annual Innovations series opened this past weekend, showcasing work by company artists alongside Jessica Lang. As always, the evening presents wide-ranging approaches which will expand next year with a new National Choreographic Festival and a move of Innovations to Park City where it will be retitled, […]
While introducing “The Nijinsky Revolution,” Ballet West artistic director Adam Sklute recalled the riotous shock with which much of Vaslav Nijinksy’s work was met. Sklute described the boundary-pushing nature of Nijinsky’s movement and libretti, inviting the modern audience seated in the Capitol Theater on opening night to see if […]
If you’re planning on attending Ballet West’s production of Romeo and Juliet this month, you might notice the company has hired a new maestro: Tara Simoncic. Artistic Director Adam Sklute has brought her in over the past several years for projects, but she was appointed as the orchestral […]
Ballet West’s 52nd season opens with Iconic Classics, a triple bill addressing milestones in 20th-century ballet, from its shifts towards two opposing directions — musical theatre and modern dance — to its classical apotheosis in George Balanchine’s “Symphony in C.“ Opening with Jerome Robbins’ “Fancy Free,” the company […]
In bringing a cross section of performance to a broad public, the Utah Arts Festival fulfills an important role each summer. Dance is often accused of being one of the more insulated art forms, as audiences find difficulty in analyzing nonverbal ideas and, more specifically, doing so at […]
Ballet West’s annual mixed bill presents the work of neoclassical icon George Balanchine (Square Dance), Ballet West’s resident choreographer Nicolo Fonte (Almost Tango), and contemporary ballet pioneer William Forsythe (In the Middle, Somewhat Elevated). While the evening’s program is titled Almost Tango after Fonte’s newest Utah […]
Somewhere a ballet aficcionado is waxing indignant at the idea that a prestigious ballet company should reduce itself to consorting with pop culture icons to gain the notice of an increasingly attention-deficited public. But Ballet West is proudly touting the use of its Swan Lake costumes in Taylor […]
With all the golden anniversaries going on in Utah’s art community, one could only imagine with dread the cultural wasteland Salt Lake City must have been in 1960. There was no Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company, Utah Symphony or Ballet West, all of which recently celebrated their 50th anniversaries; nor […]
Each year Ballet West puts convention aside for “Innovations” and this year’s concert is no exception. From a visibly pregnant Katherine Lawrence adding depth and complexity to “The Sixth Beauty,” by guest artist Matthew Neenan, to Arolyn Williams leading audience members on pedestrian pathways in a premiere by […]
In Utah’s 15: The State’s Most Influential Artists, the publication to accompany our current exhibit at the Rio Gallery, Laura Durham tells the story of how Ririe-Woodbury Dance was born. It began with job sharing. Joan Woodbury, one of the honorees in this our new program, says she and Shirley […]
Because I’m invested in watching the choreographic process unfold, Innovations has always been one of my favorite Salt Lake City concerts. I find it significant that Ballet West supports the emergence of new methods in dance-making by creating a format for company members to develop new works. It’s […]
