Cleveland Ballet Reaches New Heights with Triumphant ‘Giselle’ Production [REVIEW]

Cleveland Ballet – GiselleConnor Palace at Playhouse SquareCleveland, OhioOctober 24, 2026 By Steve Sucato Not since the prodigious productions of Dennis Nahat’s Cleveland Ballet of the 1990s has a company bearing that name presented a ballet of such grandeur as this past weekend’s Giselle at Playhouse Square’s Connor Palace. Yes, it was that good. Saturday night’s cast, led by prima ballerina extraordinaire Svetlana Svinko as … Continue reading Cleveland Ballet Reaches New Heights with Triumphant ‘Giselle’ Production [REVIEW]

Cleveland Ballet Embraces the Halloween Spirit with Ghostly Classic [PREVIEW]

By Steve Sucato A woman gone mad, a deceiving man, and a band of forest-dwelling murdering ghost brides-to-be. No, these aren’t characters in the latest horror flick, but in Giselle, an 185-year-old story ballet Cleveland Ballet will perform this weekend at Playhouse Square’s Connor Palace. One of ballet’s “Big Five” classic story ballets that are foundational pillars of the traditional classical repertoire, Giselle, with music … Continue reading Cleveland Ballet Embraces the Halloween Spirit with Ghostly Classic [PREVIEW]

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]

Popular ‘Carmen’ Ballet Returns to Open Cleveland Ballet’s Ninth Season [PREVIEW]

By Rena Vysnionis (with Steve Sucato) Cleveland Ballet opens its 2023-2024 mainstage season at Playhouse Square’s Connor Palace, September 22-23, with the triple bill Carmen & Other Works. Here’s a look: “Pas de Dix” from the 1898 ballet Raymonda features exquisite original choreography by Marius Petipa for five couples to the inspiring score by Alexander Glazunov. It is one of the most performed works by major ballet companies worldwide. Casting: Gabriela Checo, Alexander Guzmán, … Continue reading Popular ‘Carmen’ Ballet Returns to Open Cleveland Ballet’s Ninth Season [PREVIEW]

Cleveland Ballet’s ‘Swan Lake’ Looks To Be Its Best Yet [PREVIEW]

By Steve Sucato When Gladisa Guadalupe’s reconstituted Cleveland Ballet emerged on Northeast, Ohio’s dance scene in 2014, it was a fledgling professional ballet company with modest expectations. Now entering its 8th season, with an ever-improving roster of dancers, a growing budget nearing 3 million dollars, and much of the other trappings of a proper ballet organization, expectations are much higher as the troupe has taken … Continue reading Cleveland Ballet’s ‘Swan Lake’ Looks To Be Its Best Yet [PREVIEW]

With Her New Production, PBT’s Susan Jaffe Seeks A More Enlightened ‘Swan Lake’ [PREVIEW]

By Steve Sucato Former American Ballet Theatre (ABT) star Susan Jaffe has danced more than her fair share of Swan Lake productions in her career. Her first in the lead role of Odette-Odile came at ABT when she was just nineteen in what The New York Times called, “a beautiful triumph.” She then danced it again every year of her 22-year career, including productions in England, Germany, … Continue reading With Her New Production, PBT’s Susan Jaffe Seeks A More Enlightened ‘Swan Lake’ [PREVIEW]

Dutch National Ballet’s New “Raymonda” Brings Modern Sensibilities to a Petipa Classic [Preview]

By Steve Sucato for Pointe Magazine On April 3, Dutch National Ballet presents the crown jewel in its 60th-anniversary season: a new, full-length production of Raymonda, the company’s first.  “Raymonda is one of the greatest classical ballets,” says DNB artistic director Ted Brandsen. “It is a complete display of everything classical ballet has to offer.” Raymonda, the last hit ballet created by choreographer Marius Petipa, premiered in … Continue reading Dutch National Ballet’s New “Raymonda” Brings Modern Sensibilities to a Petipa Classic [Preview]

Ballet Legato’s Inaugural ‘The Nutcracker’ Combines Tradition with the Unconventional [PREVIEW]

By Steve Sucato New to Northeast Ohio’s The Nutcracker ballet offerings this holiday season is Ballet Legato’s first-ever production. It will be presented this Saturday, December 18 at Lorain County Community College’s Stocker Arts Center in Elyria. For Ballet Legato executive artistic director Jennifer Kraynik-Muselin the thought of there not being an audience for yet another The Nutcracker production in the area had crossed her … Continue reading Ballet Legato’s Inaugural ‘The Nutcracker’ Combines Tradition with the Unconventional [PREVIEW]

Heading into its 7th Season, Cleveland Ballet Is Making Huge Strides

By Steve Sucato If you haven’t been paying close attention to Cleveland Ballet of late, the company has gotten rather big, rather fast. Founded in 2014, it has gone from a fledgling ballet troupe with a handful of dancers and being funded out of pocket by company founders Gladisa Guadalupe, a dancer with the former Cleveland Ballet which folded in 2001, and Russian businessman, Dr. … Continue reading Heading into its 7th Season, Cleveland Ballet Is Making Huge Strides

Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre: Distinction and Delight [REVIEW]

Pittsburgh Ballet TheatreOpen Air: A Series in Celebration of the Performing ArtsPrograms A and BMay 21 and 22, 2021 Flagstaff Hill at Schenley ParkPittsburgh, PA Steve Sucato As the hosts of the much-anticipated “Open Air: A Series in Celebration of the Performing Arts,” Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre (PBT) gave audiences a heaping helping of the kind of repertory new artistic director Susan Jaffe will be bringing to … Continue reading Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre: Distinction and Delight [REVIEW]