A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Ballet Arizona presents its reimagined take on Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream Feb. 13–16 with live accompaniment by The Phoenix Symphony at Symphony Hall.
Set to Ib Andersen’s critically-acclaimed choreography, the masterpiece comes to life with all-new sets and new costumes. Andersen celebrates his 20th anniversary as the artistic director of Ballet Arizona this season, and it was befitting to have one of his most beloved works reimagined to celebrate the milestone in his career. A Midsummer Night’s Dream shows the lighter side of ballet and showcases Andersen’s spectacular ability to tell tales through movement.
“We have never undertaken a project this massive in our own shops before, and it something of which I am very proud,” Andersen says. “To witness what we are able to do and build here is beyond anything I ever thought possible. In our home studios each day, I coach our talented and beautiful dancers in rehearsals, work alongside our costume shop team made up of local artisans who are building more than 80 costumes from scratch, and work in our scene shop with the designers and production team to build the sets for this new production. To be able to create all of this within our very own walls is a ‘dream’ unto itself.”
Studio Spotlight offers an intimate behind-the-scenes look on Jan. 31. Guests are also invited to meet the dancers and learn about their characters at A Midsummer Night’s Dream’s Pre and Post Performance Chats on select dates. Meet 45 minutes before show time at Symphony Hall to learn more about the artistic vision that went into the creation of Andersen’s fresh take on the 424-year-old story. Pre-show Chats occur on Feb. 13 at 6:15 p.m. and Feb. 14 at 6:45 p.m. A post-show chat will occur on Feb. 15 following the 2 p.m. matinee performance.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream with The Phoenix Symphony
Feb. 13-16
Symphony Hall, 75 N. Second St., Phoenix
For more information, visit balletaz.org.
