Harris Theater Presents Ana Laguna And Mikhail Baryshnikov In THREE SOLOS AND A DUET 9/25-27

The Harris Theater for Music and Dance will open its 2009-2010 season and Harris Theater Presents series with Ana Laguna and dance legend Mikhail Baryshnikov, performing the Chicago premiere of Three Solos and a Duet, September 25-27, 2009. The engagement at the Harris marks Mr. Baryshnikov's first appearance in Chicago since he thrilled audiences with his performance with Hell's Kitchen Dance at the Harris in 2007 and presents a rare opportunity to see the master in a solo dance performance.

"The 2009-2010 Harris Theater Presents series features the most highly acclaimed artists and ensembles from around the world and the season opening with Mr. Baryshnikov is surely one of the most anticipated dance events of the season," said Michael Tiknis, President and Managing Director of the Harris Theater. "We are thrilled to offer Chicagoans this opportunity to see a living legend in such an intimate venue. Baryshnikov at the Harris will be an experience not soon forgotten by anyone who is fortunate enough to secure a ticket."

Hailed by The New York Times as "one of the greatest dancers in history," Mr. Baryshnikov just completed a two-month European tour of Three Solos and a Duet with Ms. Laguna. His fall tour of the program will take him to Santa Monica, California, Hawaii and Portland, Oregon in addition to the highly anticipated engagement at the Harris Theater. Three Solos and a Duet features some of the dance world's hottest, most popular choreographers of the day, including acclaimed Swedish choreographer Mats Ek, New York City Ballet principal Benjamin Millepied, and Alexei Ratmansky, who also serves as Artist in Residence for American Ballet Theater. The program includes Ratmansky's new work, Valse-Fantasie; Solo for Two and Place by Ek; and a radically reworked version of Years Later by Benjamin Millepied, which Baryshnikov premiered at the spring gala fundraiser for his Baryshnikov Arts Center on April 14.

A native of Riga, Latvia, Mikhail Baryshnikov began studying ballet at age nine; entered the school of the Kirov Ballet as a teenager and graduated from student to principal dancer in 1969. In 1974, he left Russia to pursue a career with ballet and modern companies around the world, settling in NYC in 1979 as a principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre and from 1979 to 1980, with New York City Ballet. In 1980 he returned to ABT as artistic director. From 1990 to 2002, Mr. Baryshnikov was director and dancer with the White Oak Dance Project, which he co-founded with choreographer Mark Morris. Mr. Baryshnikov is currently devoting his time and energy to the Baryshnikov Arts Center. Among his most recent awards are the Kennedy Center Honors, The National Medal of Honor, The Commonwealth Award, The Chubb Fellowship, and the Jerome Robbins Award.

Born and educated in Zaragoza, Spain, Ana Laguna received her primary dance training from Maria de Avila. In 1974 she joined the Cullberg Ballet in Stockholm under the direction of Birgit Cullberg and Mats Ek. Along with works choreographed by Cullberg and Ek, Ms. Laguna created parts in works by Jirí Kylián, Christopher Bruce, Maurice Béjart, Nacho Duato, Jean-Pierre Perrault, Ohad Naharin and William Forsythe. After a one-year interlude with Nederlands Dans Theater (1980-81), Ms. Laguna returned to the Cullberg Ballet, where she continued to create major roles in dance productions and appeared on practically every major stage in the world. In 1993 Ana Laguna left the Cullberg Ballet to work in drama and dance theatre productions. She is now teaching and coaching the works of Mats Ek at other dance companies.

The performance schedule for Three Solos and a Duet is as follows: Friday, September 25, 2009 and Saturday, September 26, 2009, 7:30 pm; Sunday, September 27, 2009, 3:00 pm. Individual tickets for these performances, ranging from $55-$75, are on sale and available at the Harris Theater box office located in Millennium Park at 205 E. Randolph Dr., by calling 312-334-7777 or by visiting www.harristheaterchicago.org.

For additional information about the Harris Theater for Music and Dance, Chicago's state-of-the art 1,470 seat performance venue, please visit www.harristheaterchicago.org.

Photo credit Linda Lenzi