Cleveland Ballet’s Lauren Stenroos Takes Her Final Bows As A Company Dancer In ‘Handel’s Messiah’ [INTERVIEW]

By Steve Sucato* After a 20-year professional performance career, Cleveland Ballet’s Lauren Stenroos is retiring from the company as a dancer this weekend, following the company’s performances of Handel’s Messiah with the Cleveland Chamber Choir and BlueWater Chamber Orchestra at KeyBank State Theatre in Cleveland.  A Bath, Ohio native, Stenroos began her dance training at Nan Klinger’s Excellence in Dance and the Cuyahoga Valley Youth … Continue reading Cleveland Ballet’s Lauren Stenroos Takes Her Final Bows As A Company Dancer In ‘Handel’s Messiah’ [INTERVIEW]

Former Dancer Losing Her Vision Is Granted a Nutcracker Wish

By Steve Sucato for Pointe Magazine The holiday season is the perfect time for wishes to come true. So it was for former dancer Jennifer Levine, who received hers thanks to Wish of a Lifetime, a charitable affiliate of AARP that grants life-changing wishes to adults 65 years or older. Jennifer, who is in the advanced stages of macular degeneration, had hoped to once again experience a live … Continue reading Former Dancer Losing Her Vision Is Granted a Nutcracker Wish

Cleveland Ballet offers up an Exciting ‘Romeo and Juliet’ Ballet Steeped in Tradition [PREVIEW]

By Steve Sucato A production of firsts in how Cleveland Ballet’s Romeo and Juliet this weekend can be characterized. It was the very first story ballet choreographer Robert Weiss created for his newly formed Carolina Ballet in 1999, and is now the first Romeo and Juliet production for Cleveland Ballet under Artistic Director Timour Bourtasenkov. A founding member of Carolina Ballet, Bourtasenkov was also the … Continue reading Cleveland Ballet offers up an Exciting ‘Romeo and Juliet’ Ballet Steeped in Tradition [PREVIEW]

Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s ‘Spring Mix: 5 for 55’: A Preview and Conversation with Choreographer Caili Quan 

By Steve Sucato Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s Spring Mix: 5 for 55, taking place on April 4-6 at the August Wilson African American Cultural Center, is a mixed repertory program celebrating the company’s 55th anniversary. For it, PBT Artistic Director Adam W. McKinney has programmed five ballets that represent each decade of the company’s existence. They include reprises of Dwight Rhoden’s elegantly moving pas de deux … Continue reading Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s ‘Spring Mix: 5 for 55’: A Preview and Conversation with Choreographer Caili Quan 

Cleveland Ballet’s New Nutcracker Triumphs as a Holiday Treat for the Senses [REVIEW]

By Steve Sucato A proper The Nutcracker ballet is the best way to describe Cleveland Ballet’s new production that opened last Friday and runs through December 22 at Playhouse Square’s Connor Palace. With gorgeous sets, lush Victorian-era costumes, and marvelous classical dancing, the production took its place among Ohio’s best Nutcrackers, offering up a magical holiday treat for all ages.  In a time when there … Continue reading Cleveland Ballet’s New Nutcracker Triumphs as a Holiday Treat for the Senses [REVIEW]

Cleveland Ballet Debuts a New ‘The Nutcracker’ Production Rich in Tradition [PREVIEW]

Cleveland Ballet The NutcrackerConnor Palace – Playhouse SquareDecember 13-22, 2024 By Steve Sucato This holiday season, Cleveland Ballet is giving area audiences something it has not seen in decades: A The Nutcracker production steeped in ballet’s tradition. This Friday, December 13, through Sunday, December 22, at Playhouse Square’s Connor Palace, the company will debut artistic director Timour Bourtasenkov’s new The Nutcracker production. The 2-act ballet is … Continue reading Cleveland Ballet Debuts a New ‘The Nutcracker’ Production Rich in Tradition [PREVIEW]

Pacific Northwest Ballet’s Season Opener: From Joyous to Surreal and Back Again [REVIEW]

Pacific Northwest Ballet – The Times Are RacingSeattle Center – McCaw HallSeattle, WashingtonDigital Performance Stream – October 3-7, 2024 By Steve Sucato Seattle’s Pacific Northwest Ballet (PNB) opened its 2024-25 season at Seattle Center’s McCaw Hall with the triple bill The Times Are Racing. The live production, filmed for digital streaming on September 20, 2024, featured a new ballet by recently appointed resident choreographer Jessica … Continue reading Pacific Northwest Ballet’s Season Opener: From Joyous to Surreal and Back Again [REVIEW]

How The Nutcracker became the most popular ballet in the world – and a holiday colossus

By Clémence Michallon (The Independent, United Kingdom) It’s Christmas Eve. A girl is given a wooden nutcracker. She falls asleep; suddenly, she’s transported into another world, where toys are as tall as humans, mice rebel against their king, and flowers are free to waltz. Every December, the story gets told anew: At dance companies around the world, Nutcracker season whirls in. The Nutcracker is one of the most popular … Continue reading How The Nutcracker became the most popular ballet in the world – and a holiday colossus

Lake Erie to don ‘Swan Lake’ moniker in honor of Cleveland Ballet’s upcoming production

By Julia Tze   CLEVELAND, OH – Mayor of Cleveland Justin M. Bibb has announced that Lake Erie will don the name ‘Swan Lake’ in recognition of the premiere of Cleveland Ballet’s production of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake, a production sponsored in part by Roe Green and the Roe Green Foundation. “I am honored to offer this Proclamation in recognition of Cleveland Ballet, our City’s resident professional ballet company, … Continue reading Lake Erie to don ‘Swan Lake’ moniker in honor of Cleveland Ballet’s upcoming production

Buffalo native Adelaide Clauss performs with The Washington Ballet at Chautauqua Institution [PREVIEW]

By Steve Sucato for The Buffalo News It’s a homecoming of sorts for Buffalo’s Adelaide Clauss. The 24-year-old rising star with the Washington Ballet will perform with the company at nearby Chautauqua Institution in shows Aug. 10 and Aug. 13 with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra. It is the first time in recent memory, if not the first time ever, the prestigious ballet company from our nation’s capital will perform … Continue reading Buffalo native Adelaide Clauss performs with The Washington Ballet at Chautauqua Institution [PREVIEW]