American Repertory Ballet Will Open Season With WONDERMENT

American Repertory Ballet's 2024-2025 season will open with WONDERMENT, a program sure to delight both audiences new to ballet and aficionados alike. Presented at the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center (NBPAC) on Friday, October 18 through Sunday, October 20, 2024, WONDERMENT is a mixed bill of four unique and exciting dance works: Antony Tudor’s Little Improvisations, Lar Lubovitch’s Something About Night, the Swan Lake “BLACK SWAN Pas de Deux and Coda,” and the world premiere of a new ballet choreographed by Ethan Stiefel, ARB's Artist in Residence.

Antony Tudor’s Little Improvisations depicts two children playing in an attic on a rainy day. Choreographed for one man and one woman, the ballet premiered at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival in 1953, and features music by Robert Schumann. From Amanda McKerrow and John Gardner at the Antony Tudor Ballet Trust: “It is always an immense pleasure for us to share Antony Tudor’s work with new generations of dancers, but we are particularly delighted to be staging Little Improvisations at ARB. Both Ethan Stiefel and Gillian Murphy are highly respected longtime friends and colleagues and we are thrilled to be working together again. An added joy for us is that Gillian will be involved in the staging this time and sharing her experiences of when she danced this ballet at University of North Carolina School of the Arts.”

Something About Night is “danced to Schubert's tender choral songs about the mysteries of the heart,” says choreographer Lar Lubovitch. “Something About Night offers a glimpse into the art of stillness. An opportunity for the dancers and the viewers to share a moment of quiet in a world that has become profoundly noisy.” ARB Executive Director Julie Diana Hench says:  “It is an honor to have Mr. Lubovitch working directly with our talented artists, and we are delighted to feature his beautiful ballet in the opening program of our 2024-2025 season.”  

The renowned Swan Lake “BLACK SWAN Pas de Deux and Coda” is an iconic display of technical bravura. This excerpt from Act III of the classic ballet tells the story of Prince Siegfried as he is seduced by Odile, the BLACK SWAN, daughter of the evil Von Rothbart, and the doppelganger of Odette, the White Swan. This pinnacle moment in the tragic tale seals Odette’s fate, as Siegfried had previously declared his undying love to her in order to break Von Rothbart’s mystical spell trapping her as a swan. 

WONDERMENT features a world premiere choreographed by American Repertory Ballet’s Artist in Residence Ethan Stiefel. This new ballet is inspired by prolific baroque composer, conductor, and ballet dancer Jean Baptiste Lully, and one of his protégés, Marin Marais. From Stiefel: “In the 1990's, I was introduced to, and mesmerized by, the viol or viola da gamba, particularly through the artistry and musicianship of Jordi Savall.  Many years later, I have found myself in a place where the opportunity has arisen in which I can celebrate the many years of inspiration this music has provided to me.  A chance to create a ballet that looks to imbue the drama, reverence and illuminations within the baroque musical and dance canon, although not necessarily by way of pursuing a completely historical or biographical approach to the movement.”

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