Boston Ballet at the Strand Theatre

BOSTON – Boston Ballet, in partnership with the City of Boston and Boston Public Schools, will present two performances at Dorchester’s Strand Theatre on Friday, April 10. This annual showcase includes an 11 AM matinee for public school audiences. The evening performance, at 7 PM, is open to the general public; tickets are $5.

In the last five years, Boston Ballet’s appearances at the Strand Theatre have entertained and inspired a combined audience of more than 7,000. The professional dancers from Boston Ballet and Boston Ballet II will perform, along with Boston Ballet School students. Young adults enrolled in Adaptive Dance, a program of Boston Ballet’s department of Education & Community Initiatives (ECI), will also participate.

“We are excited to connect with the community through these performances, which we’ve given for six consecutive years,” said Artistic Director Mikko Nissinen. “The Strand engagement is a perfect opportunity for those new to dance or Boston Ballet’s versatile work to discover what we have to offer on the stage, in the studio, and in the community.”

Audience members are invited to attend a pre-show event held at 5:30pm to meet Boston Ballet staff and participate in dance-related activities. Costumes will be on display for close viewing in the Theatre’s gallery space. Visitors will be invited to explore an interactive “movement maze,” learn more about the Ballet’s international roster of dancers from nineteen nationalities, and express their own perspectives on the meaning of dance in their lives as part of an installation in the Strand lobby.

The evening’s repertoire will include excerpts from Mikko Nissinen’s Swan Lake, performed by Boston Ballet company dancers. Boston Ballet School will present La Lecon, a ballet class demonstration that progresses from exercises at the barre to center floor work, with a short ballet presentation at the end. The demonstration emphasizes the differences in training levels, male and female roles, and pointe work.

Adaptive Dance students will present Still Moment, choreographed by faculty member Gino DiMarco. This cumulative demonstration of elements covered during class sessions features improvisational movement and elements of a structured dance class. Adaptive Dance is designed to provide high quality, joyful and engaging movement instruction for individuals with special needs in order to foster a love of dance and creative expression, and to promote physical and personal development.

Boston Ballet II will perform Colloquial Dream, a work created by Viktor Plotnikov. The program concludes with the celebratory Black Cake, featuring dancers of the professional company. Set to a mega mix of classical gems by Tchaikovsky, Janáček, Stravinsky, Mascagni, and Massenet, this festive work follows six couples—in three distinct pas de deux—and one waiter in a party scene full of flirtatious dancing and sly comic moments. Event details:

Boston Ballet at the Strand Theatre

Friday, April 10, 2015

5:30pm – Pre-show Community Event

7:00pm – Community Performance, $5 ticket price

Seating is by general admission only.

Strand Theatre, 543 Columbia Rd, Dorchester, MA 02125

Concessions will be available for purchase.

For more information, visit www.bostonballet.org or call 617-695-6955.