Colorado Ballet Announces 2018/2019 Season
DENVER, CO (2/13/2018) – Colorado Ballet Artistic Director Gil Boggs announced the 2018/2019 season today, which will feature five productions at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House, a first since 2007. This season’s productions will include Sleeping Beauty, the 58th annual production of The Nutcracker, a Colorado Ballet premiere of The Wizard of Oz, Tour de Force—a collaboration with Wonderbound and Cleo Parker Robinson Dance companies—and conclude with Ballet Masterworks, featuring Carmina Burana.
“This is a big moment for Colorado Ballet,” stated Artistic Director Gil Boggs. “It is the first time in over a decade that this company has expanded its season to feature five productions at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House. It’s really a testament to where Colorado Ballet is today and how far we have come as an organization over the past ten years.”
For the past four seasons, Colorado Ballet has continued to break ticket sales and attendance records. The current 2017/2018 is the most successful in the history of Colorado Ballet. All-time records for this season include most revenue for a single production and an all-time high in ticket sales for The Nutcracker.
The 2018/2019 season will open on Friday, October 5, 2018 at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House with nine performances of the classic ballet Sleeping Beauty, choreographed by Marius Petipa, and music by Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky performed live by the Colorado Ballet Orchestra. The fairytale Sleeping Beauty will entertain with captivating fairies, curses, princes and a beautiful princess—all depicted through the artistry of Colorado Ballet’s dancers, along with dreamy costumes and sets.
Just in time for the holidays, Colorado Ballet’s acclaimed production of The Nutcracker returns for its 58th season. In addition to being the largest production of The Nutcracker in the state, Colorado Ballet’s 2016 production was named the best-loved Nutcracker in the U.S. in the 10th Annual Goldstar National Nutcracker Award Contest. This season Colorado Ballet will continue this beloved tradition with 27 performances from November 24-December 24, 2018 at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House, with live music performed by the Colorado Ballet Orchestra.
“Even after 57 seasons, Colorado Ballet’s The Nutcracker continues to delight sold-out audiences year after year,” said Boggs. “Our performances sell out quickly, so I encourage patrons to buy their tickets early for this timeless story filled with tradition, humor and holiday magic.”
In February 2019, Colorado Ballet will bring a premiere to Colorado—The Wizard of Oz. From the creator of the huge 2014 hit Alice (in wonderland), Septime Webre choreographed The Wizard of Oz for a unique partnership between three esteemed ballet companies. Colorado Ballet partnered with Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet (Artistic Director Andre Lewis) and Kansas City Ballet (Artistic Director Devon Carney) to bring into existence this new large-scale work that will not only expand the repertoire, but will also delight audiences and critics alike. Follow the yellow brick road to new and exciting adventures at Colorado Ballet.
Speaking about this innovative collaboration, Artistic Director Gil Boggs states, “We are delighted and honored to announce that we have partnered with these two respected ballet companies to bring a new work into existence, and onto the stage of the Ellie Caulkins Opera House, performed by Colorado Ballet’s own dancers with live music by Matthew Pierce performed by the Colorado Ballet Orchestra. Today, performing arts companies are exploring creative ways to produce new and grand productions on limited budgets, and this collaboration gives all three companies a way to create something new and much larger than any of us would have been able to produce independently.”
Continuing in the spirit of collaboration and innovation, Colorado Ballet will present Tour de Force featuring Colorado Ballet alongside Colorado’s own Wonderbound and Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Companies, March 8-10, 2019, with four performances at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House. This collaborative program will showcase a contemporary work performed by Colorado Ballet, a new work choreographed by Wonderbound Artistic Director Garrett Ammon starring Colorado Ballet and Wonderbound dancers, and a new work choreographed by Artistic Director Cleo Parker Robinson featuring Colorado Ballet and Cleo Parker Robinson Dancers. This vibrant and innovative program will celebrate dance in Colorado and the incredible way that the art of dance can create joy and inspiration.
About Wonderbound
Wonderbound is an American dance company that lives at the convergence of tradition and innovation, vulnerability and courage, and intimacy and openness. Under the leadership of husband-and-wife team Garrett Ammon and Dawn Fay, Wonderbound is committed to the development and sharing of collaborative artistic experiences. These undertakings have come to define Wonderbound, producing creations that erase boundaries between mediums and engage artists and audiences in candid explorations of the human experience. https://wonderbound.com/
About Cleo Parker Robinson Dance
Cleo Parker Robinson Dance (CPRD) is a cultural ambassador, infusing vitality, innovation and education into every community they touch—around the corner and around the globe. CPRD became a 501(c)(3) Not-for-Profit organization in 1974, continuing to build upon its dance school and ensemble origins. In four decades, they have developed into an internationally esteemed organization that operates beyond the traditional performing arts model. https://cleoparkerdance.org/
Closing out the 2018/2019 season, Ballet Masterworks at the Ellie Caulkins Opera house will feature Carmina Burana, and a second work to be announced. For the first time in nearly 20 years, Colorado Ballet will perform Carmina Burana. Choreography by former Colorado Ballet Artistic Director Fernand Nault. The evocative and powerful music by Carl Orff will be performed live by the Colorado Ballet Orchestra and chorus.
Season subscriptions are on sale now and single tickets will be on sale July 15, 2018. Visit www.coloradoballet.org for more information.
Colorado Ballet is supported by the Scientific & Cultural Facilities District.
About Colorado Ballet
Established in 1961 by Lillian Covillo and Freidann Parker, Colorado Ballet is a non-profit organization celebrating 57 years of presenting world-class classical ballet and superior dance in Denver. Under the direction of Artistic Director Gil Boggs, Colorado Ballet presents more than 50 performances annually. Colorado Ballet enhances the cultural life of Colorado through performances of the professional company, training at the Academy, and Education & Community Engagement programs. Visit www.coloradoballet.org.
