Boston Ballet announces 2025-2026 season
Boston Ballet's Viktorina Kapitonova and SeokJoo Kim in company principal Lia Cirio's "After."
Rosalie O'Connor, courtesy of Boston Ballet
Boston Ballet artistic director Mikko Nissinen describes the company's 62nd-anniversary season as combining 'some really long-term dreams coming true' and 'some visits to friends from the past.'
'Jewels' (Nov. 6-16), which premiered at New York City Ballet in 1967, is an evening-length triptych: 'Emeralds,' to music by Gabriel Fauré; 'Rubies,' to Igor Stravinsky's Capriccio for Piano and Orchestra; and 'Diamonds,' to the last four movements of Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky's Third Symphony. Boston Ballet last did the piece in 2014. Nissinen considers it one of the great dance works of the 20th century, 'a jewel in the classical ballet repertory and also an absolute masterpiece from Balanchine. It's like one of your closest friends. We're just very happy to revisit.'
Crystal Pite's 'The Seasons' Canon" will return for Boston Ballet's 'Winter Experience' in March 2026.
Rosalie O'Connor, courtesy of Boston Ballet
Advertisement
The company's annual production of 'The Nutcracker' follows (Nov. 28-Dec. 28). Nissinen, citing this season's 46 sold-out performances of the holiday classic, isn't looking to change it. 'Winter Experience' (March 5-15) will couple Elo's 'Sacre' with Pite's 'The Seasons' Canon.' Nissinen likens the evening to an 'old-fashioned movie double bill, two amazing, contrasting works.' Set to the title Stravinsky score, 'Sacre' premiered in 2009, the final work Boston Ballet danced at the Wang Center. At the Opera House, Nissinen says, they'll have to reconfigure the line of tiny propane fires set along the rear of the stage. He adds, 'As you know, Jorma always tweaks it,' so audiences may be seeing something a bit different from the original.
Advertisement
Set to Max Richter's recomposition of Vivaldi's 'The Four Seasons' and calling for 54 dancers, 'The Seasons' Canon' was part of this season's 'Fall Experience' in October. Nissinen makes no apology for bringing the piece back so soon. 'It's a massive work that just about everybody related to last year. I have been in love with her work for such a long time, and now I just want to keep Crystal Pite coming in our rep year after year.'
National Ballet of Canada's former principal dancer Jillian Vanstone and former second soloist Joe Chapman in Sir Frederick Ashton's "The Dream"; the ballet will be part of the Boston Ballet's 2025-26 season in March 2026.
Aleksandar Antonijevic, courtesy of National Ballet of Canada
'The Dream' (March 19-29) pairs Ashton's one-act 'The Dream' with the Stromile world premiere. 'I love Ashton's 'Dream.' I was a 20-year-old young buck in Dutch National Ballet when I danced Puck, and then when I was at San Francisco I did the pas de deux. I also know that many people who come to Boston Ballet come year after year, and I want to show them a different 'Romeo,' I want to show them a different 'Dream.''
Stromile's premiere will be a different piece altogether. He retired from performing after this season's 'Nutcracker' to focus on choreographing. 'This is the 250th anniversary of America,' Nissinen reminds us, 'and I wanted to do a world premiere commissioned score.' Boston Ballet music director Mischa Santora will compose that score; for the choreography, Nissinen says he told Stromile, 'I want to give optimism, hope, for the future of this great nation.'
Advertisement
Jerome Robbins's "Dances at a Gathering" will appear as part of the Boston Ballet's 'Spring Experience' (May 7-17) also featuring Cirio's 'After" and Forsythe's 'Herman Schmerman." Pictured: Pacific Northwest Ballet in a previous production of "Dances."
Angela Sterling, courtesy of Pacific Northwest Ballet
'Spring Experience' (May 7-17) will comprise Cirio's 'After,' Forsythe's 'Herman Schmerman,' and Robbins's 'Dances at a Gathering.' 'After' premiered at 'Fall Experience' 2024, with a score that Cirio assembled from Lera Auerbach's Preludes for Violin and Piano. 'I can't get enough of Lera Auerbach,' says Nissinen. 'I heard so many people loved it, and Lia did a very nice job with the choreography.'
Forsythe created 'Herman Schmerman' for New York City Ballet's 1992 'Diamond Project,' and Nissinen recalls that's when he first saw the piece — 'Another pearl on the necklace of William Forsythe,' he calls it. Thom Willems's score is titled 'Just Ducky.' As for 'Dances at a Gathering,' Nissinen says, 'There hasn't been a day in my life that I haven't loved this ballet.' Robbins made the piece for New York City Ballet in 1969, setting it to an hour's worth of music by Frédéric Chopin, mostly mazurkas and waltzes. Nissinen was hoping to do 'Dances' for Boston Ballet's 50th anniversary, but the scheduling didn't work.
And finally, 'The Sleeping Beauty' (May 28-June 7), which Boston Ballet last presented in 2023. Nissinen observes that even though
Advertisement
Jeffrey Gantz can be reached at
Jeffrey Gantz can be reached at
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Geek Tyrant
3 hours ago
- Geek Tyrant
Netflix Reveals Episode Titles for THE SANDMAN Season 2 and Drops an Extra Surprise — GeekTyrant
Netflix has officially revealed the episode titles for The Sandman Season 2, which is its final season, and in a surprise twist, announced a bonus episode is on the way. Season 2 will arrive in two volumes: Volume 1 premieres July 3 with six episodes, followed by Volume 2 on July 24, which brings five more. But that's not all. Netflix will also drop a surprise twelfth episode, described as a bonus chapter, coming on July 31. The episode titles for the upcoming season are as rich and ominous as fans might hope. They are: 'Season of Mists' 'The Ruler of Hell' 'More Devils Than Vast Hell Can Hold' 'Brief Lives' 'The Sons of Orpheus' 'Family Blood' 'Time and Night' 'Fuel for the Fire' 'The Kindly Ones' 'Long Live the King' 'A Tale of Graceful Ends' 'Death: The High Cost of Living' Each title was accompanied by a first-look image, teasing familiar faces along with strange new ones. This final season is shaping up to be a visually rich and emotionally heavy run. The upcoming season will adapt several pivotal stories from Neil Gaiman's iconic comic, including 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' and 'The Song of Orpheus.' In the next season: 'After a fateful reunion with his family, Dream of the Endless must face one impossible decision after another as he attempts to save himself, his kingdom, and the waking world from the epic fallout of his past misdeeds. 'To make amends, Dream must confront longtime friends and foes, gods, monsters, and mortals. But the path to forgiveness is full of unexpected twists and turns, and true absolution may cost Dream everything. 'Based on the beloved award-winning DC comic series, the second season of The Sandman will tell Dream's story arc in full to its thrilling conclusion.' Returning to the dreamscape are the Endless: Dream (Tom Sturridge), Death (Kirby Howell-Baptiste), Despair (Donna Preston), and Delirium (Esmé Creed-Miles). They'll be joined by new additions like Ruairi O'Connor as Orpheus, Freddie Fox as Loki, Clive Russell as Odin, and Laurence O'Fuarain as Thor a family of characters who are anything but ordinary. The Sandman comes from showrunner Allan Heinberg, who says he had already planned that the second season to be it's last before it was filmed in the summer of 2023. Netflix didn't confirm the end of the show until January of this year, around the same time of the sexual misconduct accusations made against The Sandman graphic novel author and series executive producer Neil Gaiman. The Sandman Season 2 Volume 1 hits Netflix on July 3. Volume 2 follows on July 24, and the surprise finale arrives July 31.
USA Today
17 hours ago
- USA Today
Top Sun vs. Dream players to watch - 6/6/2025
Top Sun vs. Dream players to watch - 6/6/2025 The Atlanta Dream (5-2) head into a road matchup with Tina Charles and the Connecticut Sun (1-6) at Mohegan Sun Arena on Friday, with the opening tip at 7:30 p.m. ET. The Sun average 70.9 points per game (13th in the league) while allowing 89.1 per contest (11th in the WNBA). They have a -128 scoring differential overall and have been outscored by 18.2 points per game. The Dream's +37 scoring differential (outscoring opponents by 5.3 points per game) is a result of putting up 85.9 points per game (second in WNBA) while allowing 80.6 per contest (eighth in league). Watch the WNBA on Fubo! How to watch Sun vs. Dream Date: Friday, June 6, 2025 Friday, June 6, 2025 Time: 7:30 p.m. ET 7:30 p.m. ET How to watch on TV: ION ION Location: Uncasville, Connecticut Uncasville, Connecticut Venue: Mohegan Sun Arena Sun's last game Connecticut lost to New York 100-52 in its last game. Charles led the way with 10 points, followed by Jacy Sheldon with 10 points and two steals. Tina Charles: 10 PTS | 1 REB |0 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 0 3PM Jacy Sheldon: 10 PTS | 3 REB |2 AST | 2 STL | 0 BLK | 1 3PM Marina Mabrey: 8 PTS | 4 REB |2 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 2 3PM Dream's last game Atlanta is coming into this game having beat Seattle 94-87 in its last game. Rhyne Howard led the team with 33 points, six rebounds, five assists and two steals. Rhyne Howard: 33 PTS | 6 REB |5 AST | 2 STL | 1 BLK | 4 3PM Allisha Gray: 28 PTS | 4 REB |2 AST | 0 STL | 0 BLK | 3 3PM Brionna Jones: 15 PTS | 5 REB |2 AST | 1 STL | 0 BLK | 0 3PM Sun players to watch Marina Mabrey posts a team-leading 3.3 assists per game. She is also putting up 15.0 points and 5.1 rebounds, shooting 35.2% from the floor and 30.5% from downtown with 2.6 made 3-pointers per contest (fifth in league). Charles is tops on her squad in points per contest (16.1), and also posts 5.1 rebounds and 1.7 assists. At the other end, she posts 0.9 steals and 0.3 blocked shots. Olivia Nelson-Ododa paces her team in rebounds per contest (6.4), and also posts 9.6 points and 1.0 assists. At the other end, she posts 0.6 steals and 0.7 blocked shots. Saniya Rivers averages 7.7 points, 2.8 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game, shooting 35.6% from the floor. Bria Hartley posts 7.6 points, 1.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game. Defensively, she averages 1.1 steals and 0.0 blocked shots. Dream players to watch Allisha Gray paces the Dream in scoring (21.4 points per game), and posts 5.1 rebounds and 4.6 assists. She also delivers 0.7 steals and 0.6 blocked shots. Howard is the Dream's top assist person (5.0 per game), and she produces 17.6 points and 5.6 rebounds. Her assist average ranks her seventh in the league. Brionna Jones is posting a team-best 9.3 rebounds per game. And she is contributing 13.9 points and 2.7 assists, making 47.4% of her shots from the field. Nia Coffey gets the Dream 7.0 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. She also puts up 0.4 steals and 0.7 blocked shots. Brittney Griner gives the Dream 12.2 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game. She also posts 0.2 steals and 1.2 blocked shots (eighth in WNBA). Watch the WNBA on Fubo!
CBS News
2 days ago
- CBS News
Boston Ballet's "Roméo et Juliette" features unique form of dancing in the tragic love story
Boston Ballet's new production of "Roméo et Juliette" is unlike any you've seen before, with Juliette taking on a different form of dancing. The tragic love story in this contemporary piece is still intact but the presentation of the ballet is unique, with Juliette dancing some of the piece barefoot. "The barefoot dance is actually harder for classical ballet dancers," said principal dancer Seo Hye Han. "We are switching from pointe shoes to bare feet. That means we are using different muscles of the legs, so I do some exercises to turn on the different muscles." In rehearsals, the dancers wrap their ankles for extra support and in some cases, tape their toes to protect their feet from blisters. "[It] was a little challenging but now I understand why it must be barefoot because it changes the mood, it changes the movement, it gets more wild and more natural," said Han. "I think when you see a dancer, barefoot, hair down, just fully herself or himself, it makes it such a personal journey. It makes it so vulnerable," said second soloist Courtney Nitting. "Playing the nurse, I am very close with the Juliette and the Roméo even throughout the entire ballet and seeing those characters go through the starts in pointe shoes and then going to barefoot, you just really much of her soul that she can give to the audience. I think that's what dancing barefoot does. You're grounded in the floor, you're not really wearing anything, your hair is down, you're just completely you and you're in the story with the music." Combining dancing and acting For both dancers, acting is a key part of the performance. "I already danced a different version of Juliet many years ago and that Juliet was more girly, fragile, lyrical. So I needed to recreate my own Juliet again when I learned this ballet," said Han. "The funny thing is this Juliet is more close to my personality so I had so much fun doing not really shy in this version. She knows what she wants. She's very wild. She's bold, sometimes very rebellious." "I get to be super fun and silly and flirty as the nurse," said Nitting. "And then I also get to find those deeper, more intimate particular version of 'Roméo et Juliette' is just very human and I think that's something that's really special about it and it makes it personal for us as dancers and hopefully for the audience as well." "It drains lots of emotions from me and that's the actually hardest part, dancing in this Roméo et Juliette," said Han. "I have to put everything in it." Boston Ballet's production of "Roméo et Juliette" is at the Citizens Opera House through Sunday, June 8.
