Performance Dates
GLEAMING, HIGH-SPIRITED, & DELIGHTFULLY IMAGINATIVE
Two plotless Balanchine classics and a narrative ballet from Christopher Wheeldon comprise this program. Divertimento No. 15 is a bravura series of variations marked by complex and captivating classical steps, while the ebullient Tschaikovsky Pas de Deux is a thrilling dance that showcases Balanchine’s ability to evoke a world of romance with just two dancers and less than ten minutes of music. For Carnival of the Animals, Wheeldon, employing a scenario written by the actor John Lithgow, was inspired by New York’s Museum of Natural History to create a delightful fantasy in which a young boy dreams that his family and friends have all been transformed into fauna.
Ballets on this Program
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Divertimento No. 15
Balanchine considered Mozart’s Divertimento No. 15 the finest ever written and to compliment the sparkling score, he created a work of prodigious ingenuity featuring a regal cast of dancers.
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Tschaikovsky Pas de Deux
A virtuosic ballet, Tschaikovsky Pas de Deux is brief, beautiful, and beloved – an adrenaline rush for both dancers and audiences.
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Carnival of the Animals
With delightful narration written by John Lithgow, Carnival of the Animals imagines a schoolboy’s night in the Museum of Natural History and the outlandish museum residents who come to life as versions of his teachers, classmates, and family members.
