Smuin Ballet to Bring New Works PETAL, JAZZIN' and More to Bay Area, Beg. 5/10

Smuin Ballet ends its season with an invigorating lineup of fresh choreography, presenting the West Coast premiere of the bright ballet Petal by acclaimed choreographer Helen Pickett, set to music by Philip Glass and Thomas Montgomery Newman. In addition, Bay Area audiences will get their first look at Darrell Grand Moultrie's JAZZIN', a sultry ballet set to music by Wynton Marsalis, Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn, and Andy Razaf. The bill also includes Michael Smuin's romantic and pastoral Chants d'Auvergne. Smuin Ballet's Spring Program will play May 10-19 at San Francisco's Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, May 22-26 at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, May 31-June 1 at Walnut Creek's Lesher Center for the Arts, and June 7-8 at Carmel's Sunset Center. Tickets are now available at www.smuinballet.org or at each venue's box office.

Helen Pickett, who studied as a dancer under Michael Smuin at the San Francisco Ballet School, returns to the Bay Area to set the West Coast premiere of her ballet Petal on the Smuin dancers. Called "the perfect piece for spring" by Atlanta Magazine and "a resonant exploration of emotional discovery" by The New York Times, Petal sets pairs of dancers into sensual, lyrical motion against a backdrop of vivid spring hues, accompanied by the effervescent notes of Philip Glass and Thomas Montgomery Newman. The Resident Choreographer for Atlanta Ballet, Pickett has set her works on companies around the world including Boston Ballet, Washington Ballet, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, Louisville Ballet, Ballet X, Royal Ballet of Flanders, Ballet West, Dance Theatre of Harlem, Semper Oper/Dresden Ballet, Vienna State Opera, Scottish Ballet. She was one of the first choreographers to receive the Jerome Robbins Foundation's New Essential Works Grant.

Bay Area audiences will get their first look at JAZZIN', a saucy and seductive ballet from bold choreographer Darrell Grand Moultrie. About this highly diverse and sought-after artist The New York Times writes, "Moultrie moves his dancers around the stage with remarkable authority. [He] is obviously someone to watch." A Princess Grace Choreography Fellowship Award recipient and graduate of The Julliard School, Moultrie integrates multiple styles in his work, which is marked by sharp contrasts, bold patterns, and strong athleticism. In addition to choreographing for such renowned companies as Ailey 2, The Julliard School, and Ballet X, Moultrie was recently asked to create choreography for Beyonce's Super Bowl halftime performance.

Rounding out the program will be Michael Smuin's Chants d'Auvergne, which the San Francisco Chronicle dubbed "one of Michael Smuin's loveliest ballets." A series of solos, duets, trios, and ensemble pieces set to Joseph Canteloube's arrangement of 13 traditional French songs, Chants d'Auvergne gives audiences a playful glimpse into the lives of French villagers with choreography that includes classical ballet combinations peppered with hints of Petipa character dances.

Debuting in San Francisco in 1994, Smuin Ballet immediately established itself as one of the Bay Area's most eagerly watched performing arts companies, as "one of this country's most entertaining, original ballet troupes" (Dance Magazine), and as a dance company of international acclaim, performing to sold-out houses on European tours. Michael Smuin's singular philosophy to create pieces which merge the diverse vocabularies of classical ballet and contemporary dance has served as the company's touchstone since its beginning.

Now at the helm of Smuin Ballet is Artistic and Executive Director Celia Fushille, whose vision includes maintaining and increasing the company's reputation for presenting accessible and innovative repertoire, attracting new audiences of all ages to the medium. The company has continued to highlight works created by Smuin, both for his own and for other ballet companies, but Fushille also enriches its impressive repertoire with newer choreographic voices, bringing the Bay Area its first look at works by exciting choreographers from around the world, as well as developing world premieres by company members. During its New York City visit last summer, Smuin Ballet was praised as "irresistible, bright, and breezy" by the New York Times, which also noted, "Smuin dancers are at their finest." The San Francisco Chronicle is a 2012-2013 season media sponsor.

SAN FRANCISCO:
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
701 Mission Street
(415) 912-1899 or www.smuinballet.org
Tickets: ($24-$65)*

* The Yerba Buena Center for the Arts box office does not sell tickets for this program

May 10 - 19, 2013
Friday, May 10 at 8pm
Saturday, May 11 at 2pm and 8pm
Sunday, May 12 at 2pm
Thursday and Friday, May 16-17 at 8pm
Saturday, May 18 at 2pm and 8pm
Sunday, May 19 at 2pm

MOUNTAIN VIEW:
Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts
500 Castro Street (at Mercy), Mountain View
(650) 903-6000 or www.smuinballet.org
Tickets ($52-$68)

May 22-26, 2013
Wed-Fri, May 22-24 at 8pm

Sat, May 25 at 2pm & 8pm
Sun, May 26 at 2pm

WALNUT CREEK:
Lesher Center for the Arts
1601 Civic Dr, Walnut Creek
Corner of Civic & Locust Streets
(925) 943-7469 or www.smuinballet.org
Tickets ($54-$70)

May 31-June 1, 2013
Friday, May 31 at 8pm
Saturday, June 1 at 2pm and 8pm

CARMEL:
Sunset Center
San Carlos Street (between 8th and 10th), Carmel
(831) 620-2048 or www.smuinballet.org
Tickets ($55-$68)

June 7-8, 2013
Friday, June 7 at 8pm
Saturday, June 8 at 2pm

For more information, the public can call (415) 556-5000 or visit www.smuinballet.org
Discounts are available for seniors, students, and groups of 15 or more.

Pictured: Smuin Ballet dancer Susan Roemer in the West Coast Premiere of Petal by Helen Pickett, part of Smuin Ballet's 2013 Spring Program. Photo credit: Keith Sutter.