Colorado Ballet presents Tour de Force
DENVER, CO (February 18, 2020) – Colorado Ballet will present Tour de Force with just four performances from March 6 - 8 at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House, featuring a variety of contemporary dance works: Edwaard Liang’s Feast of the Gods, Lila York’s Celts and a world premiere by Julia Adam.
“This production offers something different for our patrons outside of our classical and story ballet performances,” states Colorado Ballet Artistic Director Gil Boggs. “There is so much diversity among the pieces in Tour de Force; Feast of the Gods showcases intricate, fluid movements while Celts is powerful and robust. The world premiere by Julia Adam is based on the board game Clue and our dancers will have a lot of fun with this choreography. I hope audiences will walk away feeling thrilled and inspired by these impactful contemporary works.”
Feast of the Gods
Originally choreographed on Colorado Ballet dancers in 2009, this piece depicts a group of nomads who, after traveling all day, set up camp for the night and celebrate with a feast. Choreographer Edwaard Liang won the Prince Prize for Choreography and was nominated for the Golden Mask Award in Russia for Best Production. Feast of the Gods is set to Ancient Airs and Dances by renowned Italian composer Ottorino Respighi, who is known for translating music into powerful, visual experiences. Ancient Airs and Dances was inspired by Medieval and Renaissance music.
World Premiere by Julia Adam
The program will include the world premiere of an all-new work by Julia Adam featuring music by Cosmo Sheldrake. The piece is based on the board game Clue and will feature instrumental versions of Cosmos Sheldrake’s songs: Wriggle, Birth a Basket, Come Along and Hocking. Adam is a former principal dancer and choreographer who has created over 60 works for numerous companies including San Francisco Ballet, Houston Ballet, Oregon Ballet Theater and more.
Celts
Choreographed by Lila York, Celts first premiered at Boston Ballet in 1996, a year before the Riverdance craze swept the nation. This thrilling piece blends traditional Irish folk dance with ballet and has received rave reviews across the nation. It features traditional Irish music by Grammy Award winning Irish legends The Chieftains and more. Celts is "…an astonishing array of dance images of Ireland, a piece that is both profound and thrilling." - The Boston Globe on Celts
Colorado Ballet will present this unique, contemporary ballet event of the season for one weekend only at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House. Patrons are encouraged to purchase tickets now and secure their seats for Tour de Force.
PERFORMANCE DATES & TIMES
Fri, Mar. 6 – 7:30pm
Sat, Mar. 7 – 2:00pm
Sat, Mar. 7 – 7:30pm
Sun, Mar. 8 – 2:00pm*
(*) Audio Described Performance
TICKETS
Tickets range from $30 to $155. Visit COLORADOBALLET.ORG or call Patron Services at 303-837-8888 ext. 2 to purchase tickets.
To continue to reduce the number of ticket resellers, please purchase directly through Colorado Ballet via the website or phone number listed above. Tickets purchased through resellers may not be valid.
SPONSORS
Colorado Ballet receives support from the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District (SCFD). Supporting sponsors for this production include Occidental, Colorado Ballet Auxiliary and the Colorado Athletic Club.
EVENT LISTING FOR TOUR DE FORCE
Tour de Force with Colorado Ballet
March 6 - 8, 2020 | Ellie Caulkins Opera House
Tickets start at $30 at COLORADOBALLET.ORG
This season’s Tour de Force program continues in the spirit of innovative dance with dynamic and acclaimed contemporary works. Tour de Force opens with Feast of the Gods by choreographer Edwaard Liang, who won the Prince Prize for Choreography and was nominated for the Golden Mask Award in Russia for Best Production. The program will include the world premiere of an all-new work by Julia Adam, and closes with Celts, by choreographer Lila York. "…an astonishing array of dance images of Ireland, a piece that is both profound and thrilling." - The Boston Globe on Celts
MORE UPCOMING PRODUCTIONS
Ballet MasterWorks| April 3 – 12, 2020
Featuring Theme & Variations, Petite Mort and In the Upper Room
Ellie Caulkins Opera House with music performed live by the Colorado Ballet Orchestra
ABOUT COLORADO BALLET
Presenting exceptional classical ballet and innovative contemporary dance through performances, training, education and community engagement, Colorado Ballet continues to inspire and grow an increasingly diverse audience base in Denver, Colorado. Established in 1961 by Lillian Covillo and Freidann Parker, Colorado Ballet is a non-profit organization celebrating 59 years of excellence.As a world-class professional company, Colorado Ballet presents 55 performances annually to sold-out audiences in the 2,000 seat Ellie Caulkins Opera House. The Company’s 32 professional dancers and 21 studio company dancers come from all over the world. Colorado Ballet’s The Armstrong Center for Dance, a 35,000 square foot building, boasts eight state-of-the-art professional dance studios and amenities for the professional Company. Under the direction of Artistic Director Gil Boggs, Colorado Ballet performs classical ballet masterpieces, full-length story ballets and its critically-acclaimed repertory production Ballet MasterWorks, featuring varied works from neoclassical ballets to world premieres. The Raydean Acevedo Colorado Ballet Academy serves over 1,200 students from toddlers to seniors each year. Colorado Ballet’s Education and Community Engagement programming serves under-resourced students, teachers, families, people with disabilities and lifelong learners, reaching more than 35,000 contacts in 300 schools and organizations annually. For more information please visit COLORADOBALLET.ORG.
