Mariinsky Ballet, Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo, Alvin Ailey and Royal Swedish Ballet Set for Segerstrom Center's 2015-16 Dance Series

Segerstrom Center for the Arts has announced its 30th International Dance Series, a season marked with important American, West Coast and Center premieres to be discovered and enjoyed by audiences from throughout Southern California. The distinctive personalities of each company in the Center's 2015 - 2016 International Dance Series come to life, from opulent and classical to daring, bold and contemporary.

Bringing beautiful and breathtaking dance from around the world to Segerstrom Center for the Arts are: Mariinsky Ballet - one of the most influential and revered companies in the history of ballet; Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo - from the tiny principality where dance reigns as one its greatest artistic contributions to the world; Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater - an American treasure and arts ambassador to the world; and the Royal Swedish Ballet - one of the world's oldest and most honored dance companies. For those looking a for a very special holiday treat, the long-awaited West Coast premiere of American Ballet Theatre's acclaimed production of The Nutcracker choreographed by Alexei Ratmansky is being offered as an optional bonus engagement.

Audiences are encouraged to enhance their dance experience by attending free Preview Talks prior to each performance that feature company members and noted dance authorities. The Center has specially priced season packages that are available for students and seniors.

Information for renewing season ticket holders for the 2015 - 2016 Season is being sent to current subscribers, with priority orders for new season tickets available soon. Single tickets will go on sale approximately six weeks prior to individual engagements. Visit the Center's newly designed website, SCFTA.org for more information about both the current season and the 2015 - 2016 Season. For inquiries about group ticket discounts, call the Group Services office at (714) 755-0236. The TTY number is (714) 556-2746.

INTERNATIONAL DANCE SERIES:
Mariinsky Ballet • American Ballet Theatre • Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo • Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater • Royal Swedish Ballet

MARIINSKY BALLET | WEST COAST PREMIERE OF FULL- LENGTH PRODUCTION
Valery Gergiev, Artistic Director
This Weekend, September 24 - 27, 2015

Raymonda

Choreography by Marius Petipa
Revised version by Konstantin Sergeyev
with choreographic fragments by Fyodor Lopukhov Music by Alexander Glazunov

One of the most elegant and celebrated ballets of all time - and rarely seen in its entirety - the full-length Raymonda will be performed for the first time in Southern California in Segerstrom Hall by the Mariinsky Ballet. Raymonda received its world premiere at the Mariinsky in St. Petersburg, Russia in 1898, the last masterpiece by Marius Petipa. It has remained one of the most celebrated works in the company's vast repertory. These will be performances of extraordinary virtuosity in the grand ballet style as only a company such as the Mariinsky can achieve.

LES BALLETS DE MONTE-CARLO | AMERICAN PREMIERE Jean-Christophe Maillot, Artistic Director
February 11 - 13, 2016

Choré

Choreography: Jean-Christophe Maillot
Music: John Cage, Yan Maresz, Bertrand Maillot, Danny Elfman, Daniel Ciampolini

A brand new ballet by Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo's acclaimed artistic director Jean-Christophe Maillot inspired by the Golden Age of Hollywood musicals. Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo is praised for its daring approach to dance, and for its third visit to the Center, the company will perform Chore?. This new work is as extraordinary imaginative and visually stunning as Cinderella and LAC (after Swan Lake) in the company's previous exclusive Southern California engagements at the Center. Chore? (the French short form for choreography) is a full-length ballet of epic scope that casts a fresh, provocative light on Hollywood musicals by setting their evolution against a turbulent historical backdrop. Tears and laughter, hope and fear, war and peace are evoked in a ballet that stirs the mind as well as the heart.

ALVIN AILEY AMERICAN DANCE THEATER | EXCLUSIVE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA ENGAGEMENT
Robert Battle, Artistic Director
April 6 - 10, 2016

Repertory Program

Segerstrom Center for the Arts welcomes the return of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater with a program of works drawn from the company's large and captivating repertory. Center audiences join all dance lovers around the world in reveling in the Alvin Ailey spirit, imagination, commitment and energy. It is one of the most celebrated and beloved dance companies in the world. As the The New York Times says, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is "possibly the most successful modern dance company on the planet."

ROYAL SWEDISH BALLET | WEST COAST PREMIERE Johannes Ohman, Director
June 10 - 12, 2016

Juliet & Romeo

Choreography by Mats Ek Music by Peter Tchaikovsky

The Royal Swedish Ballet has performed at the Center only once, in 1999. It is a welcome return to the West Coast dance scene. The company will dance Mats Ek's compelling and daring version of the world's most celebrated love story - Romeo and Juliet. The critic for La Danza said Juliet & Romeo should become a milestone in dance history. Ek states that he has gone back to the earliest iterations of the tragic story, before Shakespear's own telling. Ek's vision demonstrates the timelessness of the social and personal situations - revelatory and, as critics agree, haunting.

SPECIAL HOLIDAY BONUS ENGAGEMENT:

AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE | WEST COAST PREMIERE Kevin McKenzie, Artistic Director
December 10 - 20, 2015

The Nutcracker

Choreography: Alexei Ratmansky Music: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

Segerstrom Center for the Arts and American Ballet Theatre have been partners in creating and presenting important dance events, world famous artists and spectacular productions in Southern California since 1986 during the Center's inaugural International Dance Season. That first production was The Nutcracker - so it is fitting in the Center's 30th Season to celebrate its dance history, artistic relationship with ABT and the holidays with the Company's latest production of The Nutcracker, created by Artist in Residence Alexei Ratmansky. Adding to the occasion: students from the American Ballet Theatre William J. Gillespie School at the Center that opens in September 2015 will appear in this beloved work.

Four-show season ticket prices for the International Dance Series start at $104.

Three-who season (Sunday matinee performances only) start at $81.

Single ticket prices for The Nutcracker Bonus Engagement start at $29.

Segerstrom Center for the Arts is unique as both an acclaimed arts institution and as a multi- disciplinary cultural campus. It is committed to supporting artistic excellence on all of its stages, offering unsurpassed experiences, and engaging the entire community in new and exciting ways through the unique power of live performance and a diverse array of inspiring programs.

Previously called the Orange County Performing Arts Center, Segerstrom Center is Orange County's largest non-profit arts organization and owns and operates the 3,000-seat Segerstrom Hall and intimate 250-seat Judy Morr Theater, which opened in 1986, and the 2,000-seat Rene?e and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, which opened in 2006 and also houses the 500-seat Samueli Theater, the studio performance space and Boeing Education Lab. A spacious arts plaza anchors Segerstrom Center for the Arts and is home to numerous free performances throughout the year as part of Segerstrom Center for the Arts' ongoing Free for All series. The American Ballet Theatre William J. Gillespie School at Segerstrom Center opens in 2015.

The Center presents a broad range of programming for audiences of all ages, including international ballet and dance, national tours of top Broadway shows, intimate performances of jazz and cabaret, contemporary artists, classical music performed by renowned chamber orchestras and ensembles, family- friendly programming, free performances open to the public from outdoor movie screenings to dancing on the plaza and many other special events. The Center's arts-in-education programs are designed to inspire young people through the arts and reach hundreds of thousands of students each year.

In addition to the presenting and producing institution Segerstrom Center for the Arts, the 14-acre campus also embraces the facilities of two independent acclaimed organizations: Tony Award®-winning South Coast Repertory and a site designated as the future home of the Orange County Museum of Art.

Segerstrom Center for the Arts is also proud to serve as the artistic home to three of the region's major performing arts organizations: Pacific Symphony, the Philharmonic Society of Orange County and the Pacific Chorale, who contribute greatly to the artistic life of the region with annual seasons at Segerstrom Center for the Arts.

Pictured: Segerstrom Center for the Arts - Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo - Photo by Alice Blangero.