ABT Presents Culinary Pas de Deux at Pier Sixty, 3/22

On Monday evening, March 22 at 7:00 P.M., American Ballet Theatre will present its fourteenth Culinary Pas de Deux, a unique evening of dining and dancing, at Pier Sixty in New York City. Hosted by ABT Principal Dancer Marcelo Gomes and Soloist Craig Salstein, the event celebrates superb cuisine, fine wines, exciting cocktails and world-class dance. Along with creative samplings from some of New York City's most celebrated chefs, pairings from several premier wineries and specially designed cocktails by the city's top mixologists, the evening will also feature original performances by several ABT dancers.

Highlighting American Ballet Theatre's Culinary Pas de Deux will be a live Twitter feed direct from the event venue. Adding an interactive media dimension to the evening, online followers and event attendees are encouraged to tweet questions and comments for ABT dancers and guest chefs, which will be answered throughout the course of the evening. Chefs, dancers and attendees will participate in the feed and live photos of the event will be streamed throughout the night. Follow the 2010 Culinary Pas de Deux at http://twitter.com/ABTBallet.

Guest chefs for the evening include Brandon Kida of Asiate, Christopher Lee of Aureole, Florian Hugo of Brasserie Cognac, Massimo Carbone of Brio, Michael Ferraro of Delicatessen, Don Pham of Geisha, Nancy Olson of Gramercy Tavern, Scott Burnett of Kampuchea, Nello Balan of Nello, Samuel Freund of One if by Land, Two if by Sea, Jaime Martinez of Paris Commune, Anthony Ricco of Spice Market and Marco Moreira of Tocqueville, among others. Mixologists include Albert Trummer of Apotheke, Jeff Mancini of Elizabeth and Ratha Chaupoly of The Norry at Kampuchea. A silent auction featuring exclusive luxury items will be conducted throughout the evening.

The Culinary Pas de Deux, which benefits ABT's Spring Season at the Metropolitan Opera House, is co-chaired by Cheryl Katz, Paula Mahoney, Ruthe Ponturo, Jerry Ruotolo, Irene Shen and Melissa Smith. Junior Co-Chairs are Ian Bone and Asha Talwar and Vice Chairs are Janice Berman, Amy Rose Beresin and Kathy Thelmo. Designer Christian Siriano will serve as Honorary Chair.

Tickets for the 2010 Culinary Pas de Deux begin at $350 and can be purchased through American Ballet Theatre's Special Events Office by calling 212-477-3030, Ext. 3239. Pier Sixty is located at 60 Chelsea Piers in New York City. For more information, please visit www.abt.org