Ballet Austin to Open 2024/25 Season with BELLE / A Tale of Beauty & the Beast

Ballet Austin will open its 2024/25 season with a weekend of passion and intrigue in BELLE / A Tale of Beauty & the Beast, Sept. 27 through 29. Stephen Mills, the creative mind behind POE / A Tale of Madness, creates a provocative and sensual retelling of a familiar fairytale romance in this critically acclaimed ballet. Commissioned by Dr. Joaquin Delgado and the 3M Corporation and featuring an original score from composer Graham Reynolds (known for scoring the Netflix movie Hit Man), Mills creates an other-worldly, yet contemporary setting for this story that redefines true beauty and the search for love. 

Three thrilling performances at the Long Center for the Performing Arts will surprise and leave you wanting more! Tickets are on sale now and range from $20-$99.

A FAMILIAR COLLECTIVE OF CREATIVE VISIONARIES

Stephen Mills, Ballet Austin’s Sarah & Ernest Butler Family Fund Artistic Director, brings a familiar team of artistic collaborators from POE / A Tale of Madness back to the stage for the 2024/25 season opener.

In BELLE / A Tale of Beauty & the Beast, Graham Reynolds’ filmic score blends classical instruments with industrial sounds to create a remarkable auditory setting that is both achingly beautiful and hopelessly romantic. 

“When Stephen and I start collaborating, one of the first things we do is figure out the palette and instrumentation, and what kind of style the music might take. With BELLE, we came up with two opposing palettes,” Graham Reynolds, said. “The first is an acoustic side with piano and strings, instruments that sound and feel as timeless as the story. The other side is built digitally and electronically, with instruments and effects that lie solely inside my computer combined with electric guitar. The result is an electro-acoustic score that flows back and forth.”

Nationally acclaimed scenic and costume designer Michael B. Raiford incorporates striking sets and fantastical, Alexander McQueen-inspired costumes. Dark, foreboding surroundings and heavy fabrics help to define the unsettled mood of the Beast’s courtyard. Slashes of bright red contrast boldly with the deep, somber colors featured throughout the dance work. 

REIMAGINING A FAIRYTALE ROMANCE

BELLE / A Tale of Beauty & the Beast was commissioned by Dr. Joaquin Delgado and the global innovators at 3M Corporation, who challenged Mills to produce a new dance work celebrating the magic of innovation. Mills reimagined the Beauty and the Beast narrative and created an original dance work underscoring the complexity of innovation and how it differs from invention or creating something from scratch.

Breaking from other more traditional stagings of the well-known fairy tale, Mills drew his inspiration from French filmmaker Jean Cocteau’s 1946 film La Belle et la Bête. Cocteau’s film was also the inspiration behind Philip Glass’ 1994 opera featuring the same name. 

“During his time, Jean Cocteau's film featured ground-breaking design and stylistic elements, used to reflect the magic and mystery of the fairytale,” Stephen Mills, artistic director of Ballet Austin, said. “At the end of the war, there was such deprivation in Europe, but his work went on. It was out of those restrictions that his innovative technique in film really was explored. Ultimately, the things that cause you to look in very different places than you normally would cause the greatest creativity.”  

The nearly 300-year-old chain of innovation associated with the Beauty and the Beast narrative continued when BELLE / A Tale of Beauty & the Beast made its world premiere during Ballet Austin’s 2015/16 Season.

“A beast, in this story, is those scars that we have and the way sometimes we allow that to dictate our lives,” Mills said. “Even though Belle may be beautiful, there’s a beast inside of her, we all carry a beast inside of us. And so how do we wrestle with that?”     

JOIN US FOR THE EXCITEMENT OF OPENING NIGHT @ BALLET AUSTIN
Elevate your theater experience and enjoy artfully prepared specialty drinks inspired by our season-opening production. Relax in our Skyview Lounge, a beautiful al fresco area, complete with sweeping views of Austin’s Hill country. Enjoy “lite bites” for sale in the lobbies or take an Opening Night “Food Truck stroll” through the delicious offerings on the outdoor terrace, featuring the sweeping views of the downtown skyline, photo opportunities, and refreshing fall air.   

OPENING NIGHT AT BALLET AUSTIN invites you to enjoy the perfect night out as we get the season started!
*Pre-show only

TICKETS ON SALE 

Tickets are on sale now and range from $20-$99. Visit balletaustin.org to reserve seats online, or contact Ballet Austin’s Ticketing Services Team at 512.476.2163, weekdays from 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. CT for personalized assistance. 

Choreography: Stephen Mills
Music: Graham Reynolds
Production Design: Michael B. Raiford
Lighting: Tony Tucci
Run-time: 72 minutes, including one 20-minute intermission  
Dates: 
Friday, Sept. 27 at 7:30 p.m. 
Saturday, Sept. 28 at 7:30 p.m. 
Sunday, Sept. 29 at 3:00 p.m. 

To post a comment, you must register and login.