The Ballet West 2021-2022 Season marks the company’s 58th season and the return to a full live season at their home theatre, Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre.
Ballet West 2021-2022 Season Schedule
Dracula | October 22-30, 2021
Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre
- Dracula by Ben Stevenson
Ben Stevenson’s family-friendly Dracula opens the season in extravagant flair, just in time for Halloween. Ballet West last performed this epic ballet nearly 10 years ago to standing ovations for the production’s stunning sets, exploding chandeliers, and sweeping choreography.
The Los Angeles Times called this Dracula, “a spectacle of an order ballet audiences seldom see today… exquisitely beautiful and atmospheric.”
Stevenson is a master storyteller, and in this production, he turns Bram Stoker’s iconic tale into a sensory thrill ride while maintaining the structure and form of an old-school classical ballet.
The Little Mermaid | November 5-6, 2021
Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre
- The Little Mermaid by Pamela Robinson Harris and Peggy Dolkas
This one-hour family-friendly ballet will be performed by Ballet West II and students of the Frederick Quinney Lawson Ballet West Academy. The Family Classics Series includes guided narration to help viewers follow the action on stage. Conceived by Artistic Director Adam Sklute and choreographed by Principal Rehearsal Director Pamela Robinson Harris and Peggy Dolkas, former Associate Director of Ballet West II, audiences are welcomed into a watery world that follows Hans Christian Andersen’s story of a brave mermaid in search of true love.
The Nutcracker | December 4-26, 2021
Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre
- The Nutcracker by Willam Christensen
More than three quarters of a century after Ballet West’s founder Willam Christensen choreographed it, America’s first Nutcracker looks as fresh and relevant as it did the day it opened.
Today, it is as emblematic of the holidays as Christmas trees or menorahs. Artistic Director Adam Sklute has been recognized recently in The New York Times and on NPR for his updates to the Chinese variation, by working with the Christensen family to interpolate Mr. C’s brother Lew’s divertissement and adjusting the make-up to create a greater celebration of Chinese culture.
Romeo and Juliet | February 11-19, 2022
Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre
- Romeo and Juliet by Michael Smuin
After a long hiatus, Michael Smuin’s Romeo and Juliet returns to Ballet West. Smuin was an early student of Willam Christensen and became distinguished in his own right – first as a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre and the San Francisco Ballet, later as co-artistic director of the San Francisco Ballet alongside Lew Christensen, and finally as founder of his eponymous ballet company.
A choreographer of ballets and Broadway musicals, Smuin’s dynamic Romeo and Juliet is a deeply theatrical and heartfelt version of Shakespeare’s epic and beloved story, filled with exciting dancing for the entire company. Intensely human, the story is conveyed through emotive choreography and Sergei Prokofiev’s dramatic score.
Carmina Burana | April 1-9, 2022
Janet Quinney Lawson Capitol Theatre
- Carmina Burana by Nicolo Fonte
- Glass Pieces by Jerome Robbins
Carmina Burana, a Utah fan favorite appears alongside the Utah premiere of Jerome Robbins’ Glass Pieces.
“The day after Nicolo Fonte’s Carmina Burana closed in 2017, patrons were asking when I would stage it again,” said Sklute.
With an immense choir suspended over the stage, the reviews were outstanding, “Beautiful, gripping, and dynamic,” declared The Salt Lake Tribune.
The program opens with Glass Pieces, Robbins’ pioneering masterpiece set to music by Philip Glass. The work first debuted in 1983 and was considered an instant classic that captured the pulsating heartbeat of metropolitan life.
Choreographic Fest V | April 27 – May 11-15, 2022
Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center
Ballet West’s Choreographic Festival returns with a world premiere by Scottish Ballet resident choreographer Sophie Laplane, created on Ballet West dancers. Laplane, an up-and-coming talent, brings comedy and humanism to her work, as seen in Sibilo – one of Laplane’s first large-scale works that the Scottish Ballet performed at the Choreographic Festival in 2019.
Featured Photo for the Ballet West 2021-2022 Season of Jenna Rae Herrera, Jordan Veit, and Joshua Whitehead, Photo by Beau Pearson
