EUGENE ONEGIN Chicago Premiere To Close Joffrey Ballet Season
The Joffrey Ballet brings John Cranko's beloved ballet adaptation of Pushkin's classic to Chicago audiences
The Joffrey Ballet will conclude its 2025-26 season with the highly anticipated Chicago Premiere of Yuri Possokhov's Eugene Onegin, a richly layered and deeply human exploration of love, loss, and redemption inspired by Alexander Pushkin's poetic novel.
From the acclaimed creative team behind Anna Karenina, Eugene Onegin—a co-production with San Francisco Ballet—features an original score by the award-winning composer, performer, and conductor Ilya Demutsky and an immersive set design that plunges audiences into the fragility of the human heart. Eugene Onegin takes place for ten performances only at the historic Lyric Opera House, 20 North Upper Wacker Drive in downtown Chicago, from June 4 to 14, 2026.
“Our longstanding creative partnership with Yuri Possokhov has reached a new height with Eugene Onegin, fueled by an exceptionally hands-on collaboration with San Francisco Ballet — one that elevates every detail. The result is a work of precision and emotional depth, brought together with dynamic choreography, an original score, and striking costume and set design that frames the timeless story. Possokhov's Eugene Onegin is an experience that exemplifies the full measure of the Joffrey's artistic ambition," says The Mary B. Galvin Artistic Director Ashley Wheater MBE.
“As we conclude our 70th anniversary season, Eugene Onegin is both a celebration and a testament to what collaboration and partnership can achieve. At every level, our ability to move audiences depends on the strength of the relationships behind the work, and we are grateful to our community of supporters for taking the leap with us. Mounting a production of this scale marks a new milestone for the Joffrey and demonstrates our stability as we look to the future,” said Greg Cameron, President and CEO.
Set against the backdrop of 19th-century Russian aristocracy, the cautionary tale centers on Eugene Onegin, an enigmatic and aloof aristocrat whose life is forever altered after his fateful encounter with the earnest Tatiana. The events that follow – a tragic duel, a devastating loss, and a chance reunion force Eugene Onegin to confront the weight of his choices. Considered a classic work of literature, Eugene Onegin and its protagonist have served as models for literary heroes across time, with a worldly yet personal narrative style.
A frequent guest choreographer of The Joffrey Ballet, Possokhov returns to the Lyric Opera stage following 2019's incredibly favored full-length commission of Anna Karenina, a co-production of the Joffrey and the Australian Ballet. Eugene Onegin reunites the award-winning team behind Anna Karenina, including Possokhov and Demutsky; plus, librettist Valeriy Pecheykin, set designer Tom Pye, Costume Designer Tim Yip (an Oscar-winner in Art Direction for “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”), lighting designer Jim French, and projection designer Finn Ross.
Eugene Onegin marks the first full-length co-production between The Joffrey Ballet and San Francisco Ballet and received its World Premiere in San Francisco in January 2026.
The Joffrey Ballet is grateful to Eugene Onegin Presenting Sponsors Lorna Ferguson and Terry Clark, Anne L. Kaplan, Lynda Sue Lane, M.D., Rudolf Nureyev Fund at The Joffrey Ballet, and Mr. and Mrs. Joel V. Williamson; Major Sponsors Mary Jo and Doug Basler, Dancing Skies Foundation, Ethel Gofen, Alexandra C. Nichols, Audrey L. Weaver, and The Women's Board of The Joffrey Ballet; Production Sponsors Holly Palmer Foundation, Make it Better Foundation, Gary Metzner and Scott Johnson, and Bill and Orli Staley Foundation; Costume Sponsor Jane Ellen Murray Foundation; Lead Commissioned Score Sponsor The Marina and Arnold Tatar Fund for Live Music, and Commissioned Score Sponsor Marion A. Cameron-Gray and J. Douglas Gray.
Eugene Onegin features live music performed by the Lyric Opera Orchestra, conducted by Scott Speck, Music Director of The Joffrey Ballet.
TICKETS AND SCHEDULE
The Joffrey Ballet presents Eugene Onegin from Thursday, June 4 to Sunday, June 14, 2026.
The Joffrey Ballet is the only official seller with the best prices. Be aware of ticket re-sellers offering overpriced or invalid tickets. Tickets are available for purchase at the Lyric Opera Box Office, located at 20 N. Upper Wacker Dr., by telephone at 312.386.8905, or online at joffrey.org.
Videos