CLEVELAND, Jan. 10, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Verb Ballets, Cleveland's National Repertory Dance Company, returns to Playhouse Square's Ohio Theatre for one night only with their popular New Classics Collection on Saturday, January 26, 2008, at 8:00 p.m. The Board of Trustees, Artistic Director Hernando Cortez and Executive Director Dr. Margaret Carlson are pleased to announce one world premiere, one reconceived revival and the return of two audience favorites. "Not since the early days of the former Cleveland Ballet has a local dance troupe generated as much excitement as Verb Ballets," states The Plain Dealer. Reserved seats are $18 - $25 and are available by calling 216.241.6000 or through www.playhousesquare.org. Verb's Playhouse Square performance is underwritten by the John P. Murphy Foundation. The patron sponsor is Millie L. Carlson.
New this season: Check out Artistic Director Hernando Cortez's creative process for the world premiere piece, Frontrow, daily on his blog via www.verbballets.org.
The New Classics Collection for this performance include the following:
Frontrow. World Premiere. Choreographed by Hernando Cortez. Music by David Lang, recorded by Bang on a Can All Stars. Amidst vertical silver panels, Cortez re-explores neo-classic abstraction. Composer David Lang's music "Cheating, Lying, Stealing," recorded by the popular Bang on a Can All Stars, mixed with "Verbtuosity" (2003), by CSU Director of Music Eric Ziolek, propel the dance. Cortez's formal choreographic background continues to align him with an emphasis on musically motivated movement patterns and formal elegance. Trad A Burns' evocative lighting brings mystery and sculpture to the dance area. "Verbtuosity," created through the generous support of the Bascom Little Fund, will be played live by John Perrine on saxophone and Matthew Bassett on percussion. Costumes by Gina Dudek.
Songs. Reconceived Revival. Choreographed by Hernando Cortez. Music by Gustav Mahler. Originally premiered at Cleveland's Museum of Natural History (September, 2007), Cortez has reworked and fine-tuned this dance-poem. New sets and costumes by husband and wife team, Robert Katkowsky and Suzy Campbell, add to the haunting lyricism of Songs. Trad A Burns, resident lighting designer, explores themes of transcendence through the interplay of light and dancer. Mahler's music traces a young man's anguish as his beloved eludes him, a theme that reflects the composer's youth at the time of writing. He began to compose the piece in 1884 when he was 24 years old. Mahler's continual search for answers to life's mysteries is a universal theme that pervades clearly in Cortez's new ballet. "Songs of a Wayfarer" and excerpts of Mahler's Symphony No. 1 provide an opportunity for Cortez's expression of taut emotional despair. The creation of this dance was made possible through the generous support of the Cleveland Foundation.
Bolero. Major Revival. Ohio Ballet Founder Heinz Poll's dramatically sensual ballet is set to the legendary Maurice Ravel score. Bolero blends Indian and modern dance styles in a propulsive, driving and intensely rigorous mix. This Verb production was staged by former Ohio Ballet dancer, Amy Miller, with the permission of Xochitl Tejeda de Cerda. Costumes, by A. Christina Giannini, were reconstructed by Janet Bolick. Original lighting design by Julie Duro, reconceived by Trad A Burns. This piece was made possible through the generous support of The AHS Foundation.
Duet. Poll choreographed this dance in the neoclassical style of George Balanchine, regarded as the foremost contemporary choreographer in ballet. Poll's use of J.S. Bach's "Adagio" from his Organ Toccata in C, arranged for cello and piano by former Ohio Ballet Music Director David Fisher, showcases Poll's musical mastery. Original lighting was by Thomas Skelton. Duet will be played live by David Fisher (piano) and Greg Fiocca (cello). The first performance took place on Aug. 8, 1979, at the Ted Shawn Theater in Becket, Massachusetts. This revival is made possible through the generous support of the AHS Foundation.
The company includes Danielle Brickman, Ashley Cohen, Erin Conway, Katie Gnagy, Sydney Ignacio, Catherine Meredith, Brian Murphy, Anna Roberts, Robert Wesner, and guest artist Jennifer Mull.
Playhouse Square's Ohio Theatre is located at 1501 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, OH 44115. Reserved seats are $18 - $25 and are available by calling 216.241.6000 or through www.playhousesquare.org.
Verb's Playhouse Square performance is underwritten by the John P. Murphy Foundation. The patron sponsor is Millie L. Carlson.
Major sponsors of Verb Ballets include AHS Foundation; The Bascom Little Fund; Millie L. Carlson; Cleveland Arts and Culture, RSIS: a NASA Glenn Contractor; The Cleveland Foundation; Cuyahoga Arts and Culture; The Free Times; The George Gund Foundation; Kulas Foundation; The Laub Foundation; The McGregor Foundation; John P. Murphy Foundation; The National Endowment for the Arts; The Ohio Arts Council; The Plain Dealer; and Playhouse Square. Additional individual sponsors include Charles and Sandy Abookire, Chuck and Ann Ennis, and Norma and Jeffrey Glazer.
DANSKIN is the official 2007-2008 sponsor of Verb Ballets. Additional Verb sponsors include Baumgarten & Company, LLP; Cedar Hill Communications; Hotcards.com; Mann Jewelers; PrimeNewswire; and Shima Limo.
Verb Ballets is now in its sixth season under the leadership of Artistic Director Hernando Cortez, Executive Director Dr. Margaret Carlson, an energetic staff and its dedicated Board of Trustees, who have established Verb as Cleveland's premiere dance repertory company. Verb Ballets was named one of "25 to Watch in 2004" by Dance Magazine, the country's leading news magazine covering dance. Verb Ballets discovers, collects, interprets and stages choreography that matters to the region and to the world of dance. As a curator of expressive movement that is globally connected and nationally respected, Verb Ballets has a mandate to support and foster emerging talent, present excellence in contemporary choreographers and revive and honor modern dance classics.