BalletMet’s Rachael Parini To End Her 20-Year Dancing Career with Her First Villainess Role in ‘Sleeping Beauty’ [INTERVIEW]

By Steve Sucato As the story goes, Rachael Parini’s dance journey began at age three when she told her mother that she wanted to play football like her father, who was then a player at Florida State University. The next day, her mother enrolled her in ballet class.  A native of Snellville, GA, her early dance training began at the Mazza-Smith Dance Studio in Jacksonville, … Continue reading BalletMet’s Rachael Parini To End Her 20-Year Dancing Career with Her First Villainess Role in ‘Sleeping Beauty’ [INTERVIEW]

Pittsburgh Ballet launches its 45th season with ‘The Sleeping Beauty’

By Steve Sucato In a great story ballet, the principal roles provide the emotional adrenaline and the corps de ballet the pulse. The corps creates the world for the main characters to play off of, and is integral to advancing the narrative and creating much of the beauty audiences associate with such ballets. What would Swan Lake be without its swans, or Giselle without its ghostly wilis? … Continue reading Pittsburgh Ballet launches its 45th season with ‘The Sleeping Beauty’