BalletX

VILAR PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

BalletX returns with an evening of thrilling works new to Festival audiences! Programming for this headlining evening includes Caili Quan’s Love Letter, an ode to her native Guam, and Justin Peck’s adrenaline-pumping Become a Mountain depicting the thrilling arc of a mountain climb. This performance will not have an intermission. 

PRINTABLE PROGRAM

EVENING PROGRAM:
Switching the Groove
Choreographer: Amy Hall Garner
Music: Somnium by Rodrigo y Gabriela; The Melody – Versus Beatless Version by Francesco Tristano and Rami Khalifé; Dminorloop by Edoardo Pietrogrande and Francesco Tristano
Lighting Designer: Alyssandra Docherty
Costume Designer: Martha Chamberlain
Dancers: Eli Alford, Shawn Cusseaux, Francesca Forcella, Savannah Green, Jared Kelly, Annika Kuo, Skyler Lubin, Jerard Palazo, Ben Schwarz, Ashley Simpson

Switching the Groove  premiered on BalletX on May 4, 2023 at The Mann Center for the Performing Arts, Philadelphia, PA
Choreographer’s Note: Switching the Groove is based on the celebration of blending multiple dance genres while progressing the foundation of classical ballet. At its core is the unity of music and movement decorated through rhythmic patterns and architectural style. ‘Switching the Groove’ is inspired by the dancer, whose daily communal effort embodies skill and freedom

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Love Letter
Choreographer: Caili Quan
Music: Granada by Harry Kalahiki; Man Piaba by Harry Belafonte; Poipoi-Taro Pounding by David Fanshawe; Seaman’s Dance by Kosrae Tribe; Tangi Maha Te by The Tahitian Choir; Be There/High Tide by Micah Manaitai; Jump in the Line by Harry Belafont
Lighting Designer: Michael Korsch
Costume Designer: Christine Darch
Dancers: Eli Alford, Shawn Cusseaux, Francesca Forcella, Savannah Green, Jared Kelly, Skyler Lubin, Jerard Palazo, Ben Schwarz, Ashley Simpson, Andrea Yorita

Love Letter premiered on BalletX on November 30th, 2022 at the Wilma Theater. 
Choreographer’s Note: Love Letter is a glimpse into my upbringing on Guam. Inspired by familial stories, facets of the Chamorro culture, and music from the Pacific, this is my ode to home.

-intermission-

Become a Mountain
Choreographer: Justin Peck
Composer: Dan Deacon
Lighting Designer: Nicole Pearce
Costume Designer: Benjamin Burton
Dancers:  Eli Alford, Shawn Cusseaux, Francesca Forcella, Savannah Green, Jared Kelly, Annika Kuo, Skyler Lubin, Jerard Palazo, Ben Schwarz, Ashley Simpson, Andrea Yorita

Become a Mountain premiered in the Peter Jay Sharp Theater at The Juilliard School on December 8, 2021. This was commissioned by Juilliard Dance for New Dances 2021.

LEARN MORE ABOUT BALLETX

Casting and repertory are subject to change.

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Photo credit: Andrea Yorita and Shawn Cusseaux of BalletX in “Honey” by Jamar Roberts. Photo by Skye Schmidt.