Oakland Ballet Presents Legacy Program and Annual Gala, April 29 - 30

Oakland Ballet Company's 2021-22 Season draws to a celebratory conclusion this month with a wide-ranging program that is both retrospective and forward-looking.

Under the banner, LEGACY, the program interweaves several short works by the company's late founder and artistic director Ronn Guidi, alongside excerpts from Diaghilev-era ballets, as well as newer works by four female choreographers including Samantha Bell, Betsy Erickson, Caili Quan and Amy Seiwert.

The company will present two concerts: Friday, April 29 at 7:30 p.m., and Saturday, April 30 at 2 p.m. Oakland Ballet's annual Gala follows at 6 p.m. on the 30th. Tickets for the Legacy performances start at $40; tickets for the Gala are $200. For more information, and to make a reservation, visit oaklandballet.org/performances-events/spring.

This season the Oakland Ballet celebrates the enduring legacy of Ronn Guidi who served as the founding artistic director for 33 years. As choreographer, he created over 50 ballets including Hansel and Gretel, The Secret Garden, Romeo and Juliet and The Nutcracker. Under his careful eye, masterpieces of the Diaghilev Ballet Russe era (1909 to 1929) were reconstructed as living art for audiences of our time. His revivals, including Scheherazade, Le Train Bleu, Les Biches, Petrouchka, La Boutique Fantasque, Bolero, Les Noces, The Green Table and Afternoon of a Faun, inspired other dance companies around the world to also perform these works.

"We are thrilled to honor the legacy of the founding artistic director of Oakland Ballet Company, Ronn Guidi, who passed away in November of last year," said Graham Lustig, the company's current artistic director. "The historical portion of our program features highlights from three Diaghilev-era ballets, works on which the company helped to build its reputation over the first several decades. We are also mounting three pieces choreographed by Guidi. Finally, we are delighted to present the work of four outstanding women: company dancer Samantha Bell, former Oakland Ballet mistress Betsy Erickson, Caili Quan who appeared on our Dancing Moons Festival program last month, as well as Amy Seiwert, who is a local treasure."

Among the program's highlights is a world premiere by Erickson, whose long career has spanned San Francisco Ballet, American Ballet Theatre and Oakland Ballet. Commissioned in honor of Guidi's legacy, Erickson is developing a quintet set to "On the Nature of Daylight" by composer Max Richter. "Ronn gave me many opportunities to create work for which I am eternally grateful," said Erickson. "He completely trusted me, and let me pursue whatever direction my heart would take."

In Plain Sight is a full-company work created by Bell who has danced with Oakland Ballet since 2017. Her piece debuted as a film in 2021; this will be its theatrical premiere. Quan, based in New York, first earned national recognition as a dancer with BalletX, Philadelphia's leading contemporary ballet company. As a choreographer, she has created works for BalletX, The Juilliard School and Nashville Ballet, among others. Oakland Ballet will remount her trio which was a fan favorite at last month's festival of Asian American and Pacific Islander choreographers. Finally, Oakland Ballet will revive Before It Begins by Seiwert originally commissioned for the company's 50th anniversary in 2015.

Oakland Ballet is proud to also announce the launch of The Oakland Ballet Company Legacy Project, an initiative which seeks to preserve, make more accessible and leverage the important works of this world-renowned dance company. The Legacy Project is a partnership between The Ronn Guidi Foundation for Dance, Oakland Ballet Company, and ChromaDiverse, a state-of-the-art digital asset management system that provides "living archives" to its clients.
GALA

On April 30, Oakland Ballet will host its annual Gala to raise money in support of its many programs, including theatrical performances and free in-school workshops and presentations. The Gala Chairs are Dale Marie Golden, Michele Joseph and Jennifer Minore. The Gala Committee includes Deborah Gerstel, Heather Rowden, Ron Thiele, Roseann Torres, as well as Graham Lustig. The Legacy Alumni Committee includes Ron Thiele, Judy Tyrus, Judy Levin, Kari Gim, Joy Gim, Abra Rudisill, Gianna Marinai-Davy, Betsy Erikson, Michael Lowe, Marilyn Snider and Lustig.

The event will take place at BLOC15 in Oakland's Jack London Square. Aurora Catering will provide dinner; wine and champagne will be donated by Charles Krug.
In addition to an elegant dinner, the evening will include pop-up performances by Oakland Ballet and Oakland Academy dancers; live music by The Orphans with Jon Lawton on guitar and vocals, Robi Bean on drums, and Vance Ehlers on bass; and two awards presentations. This year's annual award honoring an individual who has made a difference in the life of the company will go to Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf. The award in honor of an organization that has made a difference in the life of Oakland Ballet will go to Dave Kaval, accepting on behalf of the Oakland Athletics, this year's Gala Sponsor.

For more information, visit oaklandballet.org/performances-events/spring.

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